Chapter 1

In the Fox Clan, every female chooses her breeding trait when she comes of age.

When it was our turn, Father gave Lara and me two choices.

The Bloodline Trait means stronger bloodlines and higher-ranked pups.

The Litter Trait means more pups with every birth.

Lara chose the Bloodline Trait without hesitation, leaving the Litter Trait to me.

Then she became Drake's mate, the Dragon Prince, while I became his concubine. Whenever she couldn't satisfy him, he turned to me instead.

A year passed.

The Bloodline Trait had done nothing for Lara. Her pups were all black, the lowest rank among dragons.

Mine were different. With my Litter Trait, I gave Drake more pups than any dragon family had seen in years.

My standing in the Dragon Clan rose far above Lara's.

Lara couldn't stand it.

The next time I gave birth, she came to me with a blade, drove it into my stomach, and kept twisting until she killed me and every pup inside me.

Then I opened my eyes and found myself back on the day Father gave us those two choices.

--

Two orbs of violet light float in front of Lara and me.

Father has chosen the two traits himself, the strongest and the weakest, so no one can accuse him of playing favorites between his daughters.

"The Bloodline Trait and the Litter Trait," Father says. "Your choice."

Before the words are fully out, Lara's hand shoots toward the Litter Trait.

Father's face tightens. He coughs once.

"The Bloodline Trait activates the ancient blood. Pups born from it will always rank higher than their parents."

He lets that land, then adds, "The Litter Trait produces more pups, yes. But the bloodline can be weaker. Those pups may even rank lower than both parents."

In the Fox Clan, your blood rank shows in the color of your fur. The brighter the fur, the higher the rank.

Fox females are the most wanted mates in the realm because of their birth traits.

Father is trying to get Lara to choose the Bloodline Trait without making it look like he's favoring me.

Lara catches me watching Father, and he looks away.

"Lara's older," he says. "Let her choose first."

He always does this. Favoring her because she looks more like him, because she's louder and easier to love.

In my last life, that would have hurt. This time, I just wait, calm and unbothered.

The moment Lara reaches for the Litter Trait, I know.

She came back too.

In my last life, she'd held the Bloodline Trait over me like a crown.

"Only rabbits brag about having that many pups," she'd said, nose in the air. "You should be ashamed, Seren."

Now here she is, reaching for exactly that.

Sure enough, even after everything Father said, Lara wraps her fingers around the Litter Trait without hesitation.

"I think having lots of pups sounds wonderful," she says. "More is more."

The violet light sinks into her and settles.

She rolls her shoulders, satisfied, then looks at me with the smile she uses when she thinks she's already won.

"See how good I am to you?" she says. "I left you the better one."

"Thank you," I say, and mean none of it.

I smile back, then add, "Just make sure you take care of yourself. Carrying that many pups at once is hard on the body."

Lara's smile doesn't waver. She loops her arm through mine and pulls me toward the doors.

"You should worry about yourself," she says. "If no one wants you as a mate, you might never have any pups at all."

The males from every clan are waiting on the other side.

The moment we step through, the room shifts. Every head turns.

"Which birth traits did you choose?" someone calls out.

Lara doesn't spare a glance at any of them.

Chin up, chest out, she walks straight past every male in the hall and stops at Drake's side.

Drake, the Dragon Prince, was a white dragon with one of the highest-ranked bloodlines in the Dragon Clan.

Lara has wanted to become the most respected female in the realm since she was a child.

These days, the ancient bloodlines are slowly fading, and the Dragon Clan has become the most respected clan.

At every clan gathering, Lara sticks to Drake's side, always trying to please him.

Drake promised weeks ago that he'd come for her the day she came of age and take her home as his mate.

She slips under his arm, soft eyes, softer voice.

"I chose the Litter Trait, Drake. I want to give you all the pups you could ever want."

Drake laughs and pulls her closer, then gives Father a lazy glance.

"Lara and I have always belonged together. From today, she's my mate."

Then his eyes slide to me.

"The Litter Trait is the lowest-ranked," he says, looking at me. "So the Bloodline Trait went to you?"