After the war, Hermione is awarded a scholarship to study at a prestigious French academy of healing. On the only condition — monthly letters to an anonymous sponsor, who likewise remains unaware of his protégé’s identity. Far from Hogwarts, on the shores of salt lakes, Hermione learns to heal the mind and pain St Mungo’s refuses to see — and soon realises that her silent correspondent is not a mere benefactor, but a part of the history Britain would rather forget.