Light Dragons 03 - Sparks Fly

Ysolde de Bouchier, my mate.”
    “I am not your mate. I am Baltic’s mate,” I said wearily, smiling politely at the woman as she gave me a quick once-over. “I’m not with Constantine at all, as a matter of fact. I’m just here shopping for a few things.”
    “Ah.” She touched one of the packages in my basket. “The Octopus. An excellent choice. I have heard many good things about it from gentlemen customers.”
    “Yes, well ... ” I shot a glance at Constantine, and cleared my throat. “That’s not for my wyvern. It’s for another dragon. I’m just replacing his toys.”
    “Indeed,” she said without the slightest hint of curiosity. She turned to Constantine, saying, “I understand you were desirous of engaging my services. I regret to tell you I am unable to resurrect shades, and even if you were in a form conducive to resurrection, I would be unable to do as you desire. The resurrection of dragons is a difficult feat, one that only a master necromancer can accomplish. I can think of only three such people in existence today, and even then, the materials required to do so are beyond the means of most individuals.”
    “Quintessence,” I said, nodding as I remembered hearing that Thala had stolen Dr. Kostich’s priceless quintessence to resurrect Baltic.
    “Just so.” She gave me a long look. “Do you have knowledge of the resurrection of dragons?”
    “You could say that. I’ve been resurrected twice, now.”
    She stared at me in disbelief for a moment. “Twice?”
    “I sacrificed myself for her the first time,” Constantine said, putting his arm around me. I elbowed him sharply in the side and slid away from him. “I don’t know how she was resurrected a second time.”
    “Yes, twice, and it’s not something I recommend.” I gave Constantine a firm look. “Don’t even try to pretend you don’t intend to be resurrected simply so you can harass poor Gabriel.”
    “I am wyvern, not him,” Constantine said, obviously ready to go into the familiar diatribe about the silver sept belonging to him by rights.
    Marsella murmured something about seeing to another customer, then glided off to another section of the shop.
    “I’ve already told you I’m not listening to any more of that, Constantine. You can’t go messing with the septs that way, and that is that.”
    “Messing with the septs?”
    I froze at the mild voice behind me, the world seeming to stop as slowly, I turned around to behold a man who wasn’t a man.
    It was the First Dragon, right there in the middle of a London sex shop.
    And he didn’t look happy.

Chapter Three
    “U m,” I said, not knowing how to greet the more-or-less god who was effectively my father-in-law, and wishing for the hundredth time that I had my memories back so I knew how I had addressed him in my former life. “Hello. I didn’t summon you inadvertently again, did I?”
    “No,” the first dragon said, his all-knowing gaze drifting over to Constantine for a moment.
    “I’ll just ... er ... get back to what I was doing.” Constantine gave a deprecating cough before he suddenly busied himself by examining the nearest item at hand, which turned out to be an exercise ball with some odd attachments. He hastily shoved that back and grabbed the item next to it, bending his head over it as he pretended to be engrossed with it.
    I considered the First Dragon for a moment or two. “Since I assume you don’t normally visit chic London sex shops, I’m going to assume you’re here to speak to me? Or is it Constantine you want?”
    We both looked at Constantine. He was absently fondling the betasseled teat of a lifelike blow-up sheep in fishnet stockings. Constantine reddened and shoved the sheep behind him, but he must have flipped on some sort of switch, because the sheep began to vibrate with a loud hum.
    The First Dragon turned back to me and opened his mouth to speak, pausing when Constantine’s sheep started baaing in what I can only imagine its creators thought was a seductive manner.
    Constantine muttered to himself as he beat the vibrating, baaing blow-up doll against the wall in an attempt to shut it up.
    “I gather it’s me you wish to see.” I cleared my throat and tried to look relaxed and not at all worried about that fact. The First Dragon’s eyes were hooded, his face stern, causing my stomach to turn to lead.
    “You have failed me, daughter of light.”
    “Baaaagggg ... ”
    I turned an annoyed glare on the man behind