In her first life, Livya was married to a five-colored dragon. She used her wits to make him king. Her sister Claudia married the golden dragon Aurelius and spent her life shoveling dung in his cold palace. Then they both woke up. Claudia remembered Livya's glory and wanted it for herself. She slept with the five-colored dragon and forced a swap. Livya let her. She walked straight to Aurelius, the golden dragon who trusted no human, and asked to marry him. He said yes. Claudia thought she had stolen a crown. She had stolen a curse. Her new husband was cruel. Her new life was poor. Livya, meanwhile, used two lifetimes of knowledge—battles, herbs, trade, politics—to save Aurelius from death, defeat the serpent clan, and fill the dragon treasury with cotton. Aurelius learned to love a human. Claudia learned that stolen destinies never fit. Livya stood beside her golden dragon, queen of a kingdom she had built with her own hands.