Hermione Jean Granger was abandoned before she even knew who she was. Left in a trash bin behind a forgotten café in Hogsmeade, wrapped in a scrap of cloth, she should have been another tragic story. But Albus Dumbledore found her. He took her in, perhaps believing he could save her. But Hermione wasn't one to be saved. By seven, the resentment in her heart had grown too strong, pushing her to reject him, and everything he stood for. She chose to be an orphan-an outsider-rather than accept his care. When her Hogwarts letter arrives at eleven, it feels like destiny knocking at her door. She knows who the headmaster is, yet she walks into the castle with her chin high, her heart cold. The Sorting Hat barely touches her head before wailing out "Slytherin!."-a choice so blatantly obvious to everyone but her. In Slytherin, Hermione surprisingly finds her place. She meets Draco Malfoy, heir and legacy to the most prestigious Wizarding bloodline. Together against all odds, they form a bond-sharp, quiet, and built on an unspoken understanding. Their friendship grows over the years, a constant amidst the shifting shadows around the shifting shadows around them. But Hermione's path was never designed to be simple. She is drawn into a hefty bargain with the Dark Lord, a quest that no one truly understands. Not even Draco. The weight of it presses on her as she follows orders whispered to her, the stakes unknown, the consequences inevitable. When the truth is revealed, they will all learn what she's been hiding-and what it will cost them all.