[Lou's Gallery] All Forms of Madness (Louise, Ceinwen)

[div style="width:50%;opacity:0.5;font-size:0.85em;border-bottom:1px solid #ffffff;"]FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2000, 12:42PM[/div]

Ceinwen checked the little floral notepad in her hand, just to verify that she was indeed in the right place. It certainly looked like it. Lou's Gallery was, somewhat surprisingly, located in Muggle London in Camden. Camden was a lovely part of Greater London, cozy and quaint while being bustling and urban, primarily sturdy old brick buildings especially around the Market.

The Gallery, however, was a pleasant dark blue, adorned by some time of bird. It struck Ceinwen's mind and triggered memories of old Ravenclaw Tower, and the brass knocker which allowed or denied passage into the common room. She half expected the sculpture to ask her a question if she approached the front door of the shop. Fortunately (and sadly) it did not. Ah well.

A normal-sounding bell chimed as Ceinwen passed through the door into the small display area and counter space. To her right was a tight sitting area, she noted with appreciation, as she might need to sit down if the vertigo got hold of her suddenly. Straight ahead of her in the back of the shop space, almost obtrusively, was a mo'ai with alarming-looking eyes.

The wall behind the statue was covered almost floor-to-ceiling in a large picture which appeared to be a photograph depicting the Muggle Museum just a few miles down Eversholt and A4200. Ceinwen had been to the British Museum once or twice - or fourteen times - and had quite a fascination with the displays in the Department of Ancient Egypt and Sudan. In fact maybe she ought to go there later today... after she took care of this consultation for her party.

Shaking her head and trying (in vain) to clear the cobwebs out of her brain, she continued scanning the interior of the shop. To her left she saw a number of lovely paintings and pictures on the wall, as well as a few scattered sculptures in the floor space, but none of them were moving. Ceinwen frowned. This was supposed to be a wizarding art shop.

Squinting, she approached what appeared to be a photograph of a young boy and girl frolicking in a field of lavender and heather. She leaned in close to peer at it, turned her head one way and then the other, leaned back, and then flicked the side of the frame. "Hello?" she said as if asking for an employee, but she was really trying to get the children to respond.

@Louise Ellington

Towards the end of the week there were usually more visitors coming to her gallery and Louise liked these days when she was rarely alone for long even though it meant she could not work on new projects so much. This Friday was even a particularly good day - she had just sold a moving statue of a serious looking angel for a good amount of money. The provision was in fact so good that the witch started thinking about going on holidays again which was a very nice thought indeed. There were just so many places she'd like to revisit and even more she wanted to see for the very first time. It would also give her an opportunity to hunt for motives she hadn't used before which might inspire a new exhibition.

These days Louise was more into creating adult toys than into taking photos and she missed it to capture special moments or just these usual scenes that, banned on a photo, seemed to have so much more depth to them than if observed in passing. She was just experimenting with sexy lingerie that did not only look pretty but would fulfil sexual needs as well. The little panties were warm and tickling and the breast holder would contract in a way that was as though hands were touching the breast. Louise had created prototypes in three different sizes and had already reached the testing stage with a bra by the time she heard the door bell.

For a moment the woman felt embarrassed but then she shrugged. What did it matter? The random visitor would not realise that she was wearing something not so ordinary under her sweater and if they did it might spark some interest in her toy collection. Either way there was no risk of any harm. She made her way into the middle room of the gallery and emerged from the large picture of the British Museum seconds later.

A smile spread across her face when she saw an elderly woman take a closer look at one of the photographs. She always felt such a wave of excitement when people showed interest in the exhibited pieces and when it was one of her own creations it was even better. She thought her visitor had noticed her as she said hello in a way as though she asking for help.

"Hello, welcome to my gallery," Louise said, approaching the other woman. "Can I help you with anything?" She asked and at the very same moment the part of her sweater that covered her breast moved ever so slightly as though a soft wave had gone through it. Louise bit her lip and turned her head, hoping that her visitor had not noticed anything and that the next effect would not be strong. Then again, was it really her plan that the effects were barely noticeable? She'd have to refine the magic in any case.

Ceinwen almost stepped back in surprise - a photograph that didn't move, but could talk? Except, no... she immediately realised that the voice was too mature to be one of the children in the picture. She turned her head slightly to the side and saw a woman approaching - the owner, apparently, since she said that it was her gallery.

"Mmm, I certainly hope so," Ceinwen said, turning her full attention back to the photograph and squinting at it again. "The children in this photograph aren't moving. I think your camera was malfunctioning at the time. Other than that it's quite an adorable portrait. I think I recognise this field - is it the Mayfield Lavender Farm in Surrey?" She scratched the side of her face absent-mindedly with a long elegant finger. Then she blinked and turned her entire body to look back at the woman next to her. "Your gallery! You must be Lou!"

She clapped her hands together and laughed joyfully before extending a hand to shake. "Oh don't mind me. My name is Ceinwen Crearwy Conway, of the Rhayader Conways. I came to inquire about purchasing some artwork for the surprise hundredth birthday party my family is throwing for me next month which I'm supposed to know nothing about." At this she affected such a guileless expression on her face that she almost convinced herself she wasn't doing anything sneaky or underhanded. Which of course she wasn't. What if she wanted to get herself some early birthday presents? And she just happened to have them installed at a place where she just happened to know her party that she was completely unaware of was going to take place?

Ceinwen examined Louise in as friendly a manner as possible, just trying to see what she could glean from the woman. She wore a fashionable sweater over her pants and a set of heels that might have made Ceinwen trip and fall on her face even in her younger, more agile days. Very little jewelry, however - as opposed to Ceinwen's turquoise and sterling silver necklace, her engagement and wedding rings from Niall that she still wore on her left hand, two silver circlets on her right hand, and a bracelet with the Conway crest opposite the clasp.

A wild thought suddenly striking through her cloudy mind, Ceinwen frowned slightly and she put a finger to her chin. "You know, where on earth did you come from? There are no other doors in this room. Unless... of course!" She snapped her fingers. "There is a secret trap door underneath the mo'ai statue, isn't there? Brilliant! Pardon me, dear," she said gently stepping around Louise and marching straight toward the statue.

Louise appreciated that the old woman who had entered her gallery was happy to chat as she always appreciated to talk about the pieces exhibited at her gallery. She smiled softly as her visitor spoke about the photograph she was looking at. "Oh no," she replied, "this part of my gallery is accessible not only to witches and wizards but also to muggles. Therefore, the pictures and sculptures here are not magical. Concerning the picture, actually it's not the Mayfield Lavender farm. It has been taken at a lavender field in South France." While she would have liked to expand on this topic, her guest did not give her any time for that.

"I'm pleased to meet you. I'm indeed Lou or rather Louise, Louise Ellington." She hesitated. Even for a witch one hundred years were a long time. She could hardly imagine how it would be to live for such a long time. However, she assumed it would be great to have a vast collection of memories and impressions. There were so many things she still wanted to do in her life, so many places to visit. Even a century seemed too short to do all that and travel everywhere.

"It's always a great thing to give oneself a present!" Louise agreed. "While it is no surprise then you at least know that you like it, don't you?" As she said these words she wondered if the old witch would really remember if she bought something here. While she seemed still lively and agile, the gallery keeper wasn't sure if her short term memory was still so good. It was not up to her to judge or even think about it though so she shrugged the thought off and focused on the conversation instead.

It was odd how Ceinwen looked at her, but the younger woman didn't actually mind it. While she was not wearing her most fashionable outfit, she usually didn't mind this kind of attention. Only today that she was wearing her new adult toy bra she felt a little awkward because of it.

An amused laugh escaped her when the witch realised that there was a hidden door in the gallery. Her suspicion that there was a trap door underneath the statue was wrong though. "In fact it's the picture of the British Museum," Louise said, following Ceinwen in the direction of the statue. Would you like to come through?" She stepped close to it and stretched her hand out, demonstrating that one could just walk through the picture. "In that part of my gallery you will see the magical art pieces. I'm sure you'd enjoy them."

Ceinwen arched an eyebrow at the young lady. A trapdoor underneath the picture of the Museum? Ridiculous. That would be entirely too obvious, and she would have seen it by now. Or would have if she had condescended to wear her glasses. Er, wait, no, she didn't wear glasses. She drank out of them. Completely irrelevant. Bewildered, she looked around again and tried to figure out where she was. The nice young lady had lost her hand to a large picture of what certainly looked like the British Museum, but that was down the road, so... it must be magic? "Ooo! Are you a witch then too?" she asked excitedly. "Splendid! I always wanted to meet another witch. But, shhh!" she lowered her voice to a pig's whisper. "Not out here. The Muggles might hear us. Especially that one," she pointed her thumb over her shoulder at the mo'ai statue, before scuttling through the photograph.

"Well, now," she said, impressed at what she saw and seemingly (for the moment) back to herself again. This room was much larger than the front gallery for the Muggles, and the paintings, photographs, and sculptures were clearly magical. Though not all of them were moving very much, there was the automatic sensation of life that the dull, photocopied Muggle reproductions could not truly duplicate. Ceinwen received a welcome wave, and waved back, at a particularly striking statue of a centauress that looked quite a lot like Sepherene, one of the herd in the Forbidden Forest back when she had been a student at Hogwarts. The statue's ridiculously long wavy hair artfully covered her breasts and cascaded down her back just as Sepherene's did, though perhaps that was a common state to all female centaurs. Ceinwen wouldn't know, as she had only met the one.

"I'm quite sure now that anything I purchase from you, I will like," she complimented Louise as she made her way along the right-hand wall, different paintings scattered between the small windows that looked out on a tiny courtyard - presumably one Muggles could not see either. "If this is all your work, you are a singularly talented young woman, Louise." A diminutive man and woman meant to look like the Muggle idea of fairies, skyclad and dragonfly-winged, blushed at the compliment intended for their painter as they sat caressing each other under the fern leaf that was protecting them from the rain.

"You've been at this a long time, I take it?" Ceinwen turned around and looked at the woman with a broad smile on her face. "It's a wonderful thing to see a person with such great talent not allowing it to be squashed or suppressed." She rearranged her face to be more business-like and went on, "Now then. What might you recommend for decorations? It's going to be a twilight party, out-of-doors, in a field just off A470 in Rhayader, right on the banks of the River Wye.  We have about fifteen thousand square metres of space to work with and some of the best casters of Muggle-Repelling and Concealment Charms, and I know they're going to have paper lanterns and a lot of white and silver streamers."

Raising her eyebrows in response to Ceinwen's exclamation, Louise wondered if the old lady was a little senile and if she was even supposed to be out and about alone. Maybe she was in special care and had run away from there. Louise knew that these things happened with old and confused people. However, she had always imagined these people to be different than this old witch as she almost felt that Ceinwen was actually playing a role rather than being really confused. However, she wasn't sure about it and if she was entirely honest she couldn't imagine that anyone would play being senile just for the fun of it.

"Indeed I am," Louise replied, a bemused grin spreading across her face. "I'm sure you have met other witches before, haven't you?" Of course she had had come across other witches and wizards. It was sheer impossible that a magical person was never contacted by the ministry, never sent to school etc. Louise's initial thought that Ceinwen might just act as though she was senile was replaced by the feeling of pity as she imagined how it would be to forget the past and feel lost in the present time.

"Don't worry, I'm sure there are no muggles who could overhear us now," she said in a soothing voice. "And the statue you pointed out won't tell anyone, I promise." They went through the photograph, now entering the magical part of the gallery and Louise felt that Ceinwen seemed clearer now. Having heard that confused people had moments when they were all clear and then suddenly snapped back into being entirely lost, the gallery owner wanted to treat the other woman as kindly and understanding as possible.

"Thank you, that's a very flattering compliment," Louise said, smiling at the old woman. "I must admit though that not all pieces have been made by me. I'm just a photographer. Paintings and sculptures have been made by very talented artist from various European countries. I'm trying to present a wide range of art in my gallery and give established as well as young artists a chance to show their pieces."

The interest Ceinwen showed was as flattering as her kind comments and Louise felt quite at ease with her visitor now. She almost wished more people like her would come into her shop. However, the younger witch wondered if it was okay to sell anything to Ceinwen when she had moments when she wasn't quite clear.

"I opened the gallery approximately ten years ago but I've been collecting art and taking photographs a long time before that," she informed Ceinwen, smiling back at her. "The gallery is my personal dream come true. Nonetheless, I would like to get around more again but for that I'd need an employee to keep an eye on the business and that again is something I cannot afford yet unfortunately."

The description of the party sounded quite exaggerated to Louise but then again she didn't know anything about Ceinwen's background and assumed that a hundredth birthday was really a big deal. She had never been to one herself but living for a century certainly meant something. She wasn't entirely convinced that she wanted her pieces of art to be considered mere decoration but it was a fact that art needed a platform in order to attract attention and thus possible customers. If there was a party as big as described she'd even offer to lend some pieces for the day.

"A very gifted French artist created life sized stick figure couples that glow in the dark and are enchanted to dance to any kind of music played. I think those would be just perfect for a party like that. I only have one of the couples here but I could order more if needed. I know he has some in his own Paris gallery. Just come along," she guided Ceinwen to a corner of her gallery where the statues were standing. They were made from sandstone and, for the lack of music, standing still. Maybe they didn't look like the best party guests but they were standing in a dance hold at least.

"There are, of course, more pieces I'd love to show to you. Are more interested in traditional or modern art and do you prefer pictures or sculptures?" As her bra suddenly vibrated softly again, Louise wondered if Ceinwen was more into decorative or functional pieces of art. This question would have to wait though, she didn't want to swamp the old witch with questions.

Ceinwen followed her hostess' steps (actually preceded them, since Louise was kindly guiding her in the right direction) and found herself in front of a unique sculpture - stick figures, but three-dimensional. Snobs might have said it wasn't art - really dumb snobs might have still said it even after Lou had mentioned that they had a dancing enchantment on them. Ceinwen had class, but was certainly not a snob. The idea of the dancing figures played out in her head like magic. To have three or four couples surrounding the "dance floor" portion of the party venue would be delightful, encouraging people to join in on the fun and providing handsome light in the immediate area.

"Magnifique!" she applauded, even thought the statues weren't yet moving. These would be lovely! They dance to any music? Appropriately, of course? We might get some Debussy, some Joplin, hopefully the Weird Sisters. Have to shake it up for the young people, you know." Half-jokingly she started shaking her butt, and then laughed at herself.

Lou made quite the generous offer to show Ceinwen more pieces of art. How delightful the young woman was! "Then I would certainly love to see them!" she said enthusiastically. "My tastes are rather varied, to be honest. I appreciate a good strong statement in the form of the more modern styles, but of course I favour the classical artistry of the days of my youth." She chewed on her lips for a second and went on, "Ordinarily I would prefer pictures, but that's usually for decoration for a house or an inn or some other public service location. For parties, a few paintings might be lovely, but I believe that the third dimension will be appreciated by all the party-goers."

A small breeze fluttered through the room and drew Ceinwen's attention to a greyish-purple silk curtain which was obviously covering a doorway in the far-left corner of the room. "Oh, marvelous, what sort of sculptures might I find in here?" she moved compulsively, with surprising quickness and interested curiosity to the curtain, opening it and stepping into the small room behind it that seemed to be a themed offset of the main gallery. "How darling!" she giggled. "These are delightful! Puppets, I take it?" The lights in this room were unusually dim but Ceinwen didn't mind as she peered closer at the strange little things all around her.

Louise smiled and nodded. "Of course they dance appropriately and they can interpret all different kinds of music although I think there's still room for improvements. Sometimes it does look a little awkward. Anyway, they're stick figures so it's pretty much amazing that they can dance at all." She chuckled softly. The witch had tried to convince the artist who created them to make smaller and cheaper stick figures one could just put on a shelf or table. She would rather like to have one of those herself.

While the gallery owner was still not sure whether Ceinwen was actually sane enough to make her own decisions, she absolutely appreciated her enthusiasm and she was happy to look over the fact that selling something to her might feel awkward. "I am always happy to meet people who are open minded like that," Louise acknowledged Ceinwen's comment that her tastes were varied. "There's something inspiring in most pieces of art and I personally like to learn about the story behind the creations."

Again the young woman nodded, "I agree, the third dimension might be perfect for a party. However, magical paintings can be rather exciting too. I would like to show you pieces by an artist from Italy who was inspired by muggle art made by Keith Haring. That would match rather well with the dancing stick figures as it's basically the same just two dimensional..." Her voice trailed off as she saw that Ceinwen was approaching the curtain that divided the gallery from the adult toy shop.

A nervous grin spread across her face. She was actually proud of her inventions but depending on who stumbled across these items she felt a little awkward. Ceinwen certainly didn't fit the description of a potential customer. "Well, yes, among other things... I'm not sure this is what you are looking for. I mean, these items are hardly appropriate for your party..." Louise would liked to just tear the old woman back to the gallery part of her shop but that would be impolite. She could only hope that Ceinwen would lose interest soon and refrain from playing with the love toys.

The puppets seemed to change appearance as the light shifted. Ceinwen turned her head this way and that and walked in a little arc to the left around the circumference of the little room, which was alarming the gallery owner for some strange reason. At last the elderly witch figured out what was wrong. Louise seemed to think that Ceinwen was unaware of what she was looking at. How droll!

"Oh, pssh," Ceinwen waved Louise off. "I'm not daft. Or maybe I am, but not at the moment. I know a sex toy when I see one, dear. Back when my beloved Niall was alive I managed to get him drunk and convinced him to have a threesome with one of those old-fashioned dolls. We even... oh, well, I suppose I shouldn't be talking about such things outside of an NC-17 board. Whatever that is." She rolled her eyes. "At any rate, these are much more realistic-looking, I must applaud your work yet again!" And she did so, with such a serious look of admiration on her face that one would have thought she was applauding the Queen.

"Did you know technically I invented the vibrator? Never mind, that's not the point. The point is, I can appreciate a good romp at 99 just as much as when I was 29, and I can certainly appreciate good craftsmanship without wanting it at my party." She looked around conspiratorially and then held a hand up to the side her mouth and said in a pig's whisper, "Although if the party isn't very good, maybe these things could liven it up a bit!" She cackled with amusement at her own joke before getting sidetracked once again.

"Now these look darling!" she grabbed a pair of lacy black panties and held them up. "Do they come in a navy blue? And perhaps a few sizes bigger?" She squinted through the net between flower-shaped tallies in the lace and added, "How have you enchanted these? They're very intricate."

Somehow Ceinwen's reaction felt relieving and Louise managed a smile. In fact, the young woman realised that her guest probably had more experience in all regards than she had. Maybe Ceinwen could even inspire her and tell her about the needs of aged people. Did a woman of her age really still think about sex? Louise wondered if it was even physically possible for people at that age to have sex. Maybe she should invent a special vibrating armchair that could help an old woman to get stimulated without having to make any movements that didn't come easy anymore.

She felt flattered when the old lady praised her work again. It meant a lot. After all, she had known how to take expressive photos for a lot longer than she had been experimenting with love toys. This business was riskier or at least Louise felt it was.

"You invented the vibrator?" Louise enquired, bemusement clearly reflected in her voice. Did she really mean it? If she was serious, Louise definitely wanted to hear the story behind that. "Please, do tell me more," she added, underlining her interest again.

Of course Ceinwen did not have to focus on things for her party alone. However, once again Louise felt that it would be awkward if the old witch would decide to buy something. Some of her love toys were rather intense and the shop owner was a little afraid that the impact might harm or even kill Ceinwen. It would be her fault if she didn't live to give this big birthday party she had been talking about. However, Louise couldn't but let out a soft laugh when the old woman found panties she liked. Merlin, did people at that age still like fancy underwear?!

"Oh, I actually have some in different sizes and colours. I am not sure if I have the right size for you in navy blue but we can check." She smiled and pulled out a black box and opened it. "Feel free to take a look at these. Do you see these tiny stones that are attached to the panties' front just like a gemstone? They are actually small runes. I used runic magic here. It gets activated through the warmth of the body and well... the more heat the more... action?" She chuckled softly. "I would not recommend magically enforcing the heat though because for some reason the panties then contract and that is more than just a little unpleasant."

"Oh, well," Ceinwen shuffled her feet a bit and looked very slightly embarassed. "I mean I didn't really invent it, but I certainly helped bring it back. It was kind of 'off the scene' between the 1920s and the 1960s, and when I was in my late 30s my family was considering me an old spinster because I wasn't married yet. I was travelling the world and studying magic education; I'd done a four-year stint in Spain and was at this time in France," she reminisced. "The people of France have always been so much freer about ideas of sex and pleasuring yourself, but the taboo of the old Hamilton Beach vibrators being used in pornographic movies meant that most people were... well, going it alone, shall we say," she said, looking around for the eavesdropping mo'ai statue from earlier.

"While I was renting an apartment in Chateoil I stumbled upon an idea to streamline the old vibrator and make them sleek and clean looking, less complicated and bulky, different enough from Hamilton Beach that the associations wouldn't be as dire. It didn't have the bullet shape that it does nowadays, it was more like a bulb at the end of a wand, but it was still quite different from the early vibrators. And of course it ran on magic, not electricity." Now she got a coy look on her face. "I might have let the patent 'accidentally' slip out so Muggles could use it, in 1938, but then the War broke out and we all had bigger things on our mind. A certain Mister Tavel found my patent and referenced it to make his own but that didn't happen until 1966, and that felt like forever."

Louise seemed pleasantly surprised at Ceinwen's interest in the panties. She began explaining a little bit about how she had enchanted them - with runic magic, no less! Ceinwen had taken an Excellent N.E.W.T. in Ancient Runes, but that had been over eighty years ago. Still it was nice to see that some of the old ways were not forgotten and, even better, still being used in new and changing ways.

"How brilliant!" Ceinwen said, pawing delicately through the box, finding a pair in her size that were black rather than navy blue but still looked darling. She squinted at the miniature rune stones and tried to make out the binding formula. "Channeling the heat of the body into stimulation!" She saw ᚳ Cēn several times, and ᛒ Beorc which she assumed was being used for its feminine aspect, but her eyes were too old to recognise any of the other ones or to see the web network that connected the runes into a workable order. "This sort of out-of-the-box thinking is marvelous, Louise," she turned to the shopkeeper again. "Why don't you have this on display? You could stand to make quite a profit! Think about the number of witches all over the world that would just be dying for something like this."

For some reason Louise felt quite surprised by the fact that Ceinwen spoke of vibrators and fancy underwear as if those were the most common topics to discuss with a total stranger. However, the young witch reminded herself that she was facing an old woman who had shown signs of dementia already. So maybe she was just talking so freely because she was not always in the right state of mind. On the other hand sex toys and fancy underwear were a part of her everyday business. If she could talk about it why not Ceinwen too? Yet, it felt weird to face a woman who could probably hardly remember her life before the menopause and talk about sexual pleasures. Then again sex was not all about procreation. If it had been then vibrators would not sell well at all.

"Yeah, maybe there are really less taboos in France when it comes to sex. However, I believe that it always depends on the area where you are. There certainly are prude areas in France too." With a slight smile on her face, Louise listened to Ceinwen's description of streamlining the vibrator and making it sleek and clean looking. No matter if she had indeed made an invention of sorts or not - this woman knew what she was talking about. The more the old woman shared the more did Louise relax in her presence. The thing about the patent did sound annoying but it couldn't be helped now that it was part of long past times.

It felt like an unspoken compliment when Ceinwen examined the little runes on the panties. Naturally her comments followed soon and gave the previously shown acknowledgement a voice. If asked now if she appreciated compliments on her gallery, her own photography or the things hidden behind the curtain most, Louise would not know what to say.

Although Louise was way past the age where she would blush easily, she now felt how her cheeks reddened. Ceinwen was just such an appreciative visitor in her  shop. "Well," she said, a nervous laugh escaping her before she could continue speaking. "I cannot put these things on display because this is first and foremost a gallery. I don't want to send the wrong signals to passers-by. I think with these items on display people would not really pay attention to the art. Art is there to be exposed to people. It should be out there so even those see it who would not usually visit a gallery or museum. These pieces here are more the intimate items that one does not usually show publicly. It's something you wear underneath, something you have in your bedroom." She shrugged, not sure if she had made her point. However, this was kind of the concept of her shop. If anything, Louise could imagine renting yet another place and separating the gallery from the adult toy shop.

"Oh, I suppose that's a good point," Ceinwen said, obviously somewhat startled at the thought that perhaps the two business didn't really coincide with each other very well. "But maybe you just need to have a second shop set up somewhere nearby. You certainly wouldn't be the first person to own both an art gallery and a sex toy shop... er, wait, hang on, perhaps you would. But then, kudos to you! Bold move! UP THE NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN'S SUFFRAGIST SOCIETIES!" she abruptly began screaming. "VOTES FOR WOMEN!" Then just as abruptly she calmed down, displayed the article of clothing she still had in her hands, and said, "Tell you what. You name a price for these panties, and you've just made your first risqué customer."

She wiggled the panties between her hands, already excited at the prospect of using them. "Without Niall around anymore, this could be just the thing I need to put some pep back into my step." She leaned in and, once again in a pig's whisper, added, "The young lads of 70 or 80 years old are too intimidated by me anymore. No idea why." She rolled her eyes dramatically as she stepped out of the curtained area and into a larger room.

"My goodness, an art gallery too? Louise, you are a woman of many talents!" Ceinwen marvelled. The walls of this room were covered in paintings, photographs, and sculptures - and all of them were clearly magical. Though not all of them were moving very much, there was the automatic sensation of life that dull, photocopied Muggle reproductions could not truly duplicate. Ceinwen waved at a particularly striking statue of a centauress that looked quite a lot like Sepherene, one of the herd in the Forbidden Forest back when she had been a student at Hogwarts. The statue's ridiculously long wavy hair artfully covered her breasts and cascaded down her back just as Sepherene's did, though perhaps that was a common state to all female centaurs. Ceinwen wouldn't know, as she had only met the one.

Ceinwen was suddenly overcome by a massive sense of déjà vu. Had she ever visited this gallery before? She remembered going someplace to buy some artwork or sculptures for someone's birthday party... no, wait, that was what she was doing right now. "Oh... right... I suppose I should probably purchase something that I actually came in here for," Ceinwen said sheepishly, stepping back out into the art gallery portion of the art gallery and putting a long, wrinkly finger to her chins, waiting for the next several moments of her memory to return. "Well I absolutely love those dancing sandstone sculptures, I cannot deny it. I think just two, I don't want to overcrowd the dance floor. If you want to keep this one in your gallery," she spun around to face Louise, "I will be more than happy to pay for the shipping of two new ones."

The second shop. Yes, that was something Louise would like to open. However, for the time being she did not have the means for it and without the use of a time turner she wouldn't be able to keep both open at normal hours. Of course she could open the gallery during the day and open the shop in the evening hours but somehow this didn't feel quite right. She was just musing about these things when the old lady suddenly began to scream. Louise jumped and looked at the other witch with a confused expression. She offered an insecure smile and didn't really know what to say or do in response.

However, there was no need to react to her rallying cry because Ceinwen already went on speaking as though she hadn't just screamed at all. She sounded calm and collected again. "You know what? The panties are an early birthday gift for you," Louise said, her voice still revealing that she was a little confused. She just didn't feel that she could charge the woman anything if she wasn't in the right state of mind and it was not as though the panties were so very expensive, at least not yet. They were not an established merchandise these days.

Grinning at the comment about the supposedly 'young lads' of 70 or 80 years who were too intimidated by her, Louise nodded. "They will all follow you around like puppies when you are wearing sexy underwear," she said, suppressing a giggle. "Or they will be even more intimidated. "

And she was losing it again. Louise stared at Ceinwen, feeling a little lost. The mental blackouts were happening more and more frequently and it worried her. "Are you quite alright?" she asked, looking intensely at the old witch. "Would you like to sit down for a bit and have a glass of water, maybe?"

Then Ceinwen seemed to be back to normal again but Louise was still suspicious. Could she really sell or even rent the sculptures to Ceinwen? It did not seem like she was in a state to make decisions. "Maybe you'd like to show them to a family member or friend who is helping you with the party before actually getting them... I mean, it would be a shame if I talked you into buying the sandstone sculptures when they do not really work in the party surroundings after all..." Her voice trailed off and she hoped that Ceinwen would indeed summon a younger family member or friend to help her with the decision.

"Well thank you!" Ceinwen said excitedly, her eyes twinkling at the generosity of the talented young woman in front of her. "Oh, I am so thrilled about these." She held the underwear at arm's length and admired them again, before clutching them to her bosom and beaming a broad smile. "I might just wear them to bed tonight. We'll have to see." She pulled a clutchpurse out of the pocket of her trousers and opened it up, gently pushing the clothing article inside, before closing it up and holding it in front of her with crossed wrists.

Louise gave the suggestion that perhaps some of Ceinwen's family members would like to examine the decorations that she was insterested in. It was a reasonably suggestion, but Louise obviously didn't know the Conway family. "Oh, I'm afraid I just don't have the time to be bringing anyone in. They're all so busy planning the party, you see. They won't be thinking about decorations," Ceinwen explained, rolling her eyes a bit. "Besides, if they find out this is where I got my fancy new underpants, my secret connexion won't be a secret anymore." She put a finger to her lips and winked at Louise. "I'll only tell them about the artwork, and not the lingerie. Our little secret until I find you a storefront and you can display them all in style.

"Now then," she went on without stopping, "I suppose I ought to pay you for these statues. Let me see here." She opened her clutchpurse back up and shook it, the sound of entirely too many coins to fit into the small fabric coming from the small space. "I have 500 Galleons with me, young lady; that ought to be enough to cover the costs, I'm sure. Where's a counter-top that I can count them out?" she inquired politely.


[span style="opacity:0.5;"]2 statues at $1000 USD x 0.6609 (year 2000 exchange rate) = 1321.8 pounds x 0.3318 = 438 Galleons, 9 Sickles, 22 Knuts
because as always I am a huge nerd[/span]