The Magic Shop

J’avaisI had aperçuglimpsed lathe BoutiqueShop MagiqueMagic defrom loinafar àat plusieursseveral reprises;times jeI l’avaishad it dépasséepassed uneone ouor deuxtwo fois,times unea vitrinewindow pleinefull deof petitssmall objetsobjects séduisants:attractive dessome boulesballs magiques,magic dessome pouleshens enchantées,enchanted dessome cônescones merveilleux,marvelous dessome poupéesdolls deof ventriloque,ventriloquist lethe matérielequipment duof the tourtrick duof the panier,basket dessome jeuxgames deof cartescards quithat semblaientseemed normaux,normal etand toutall cethis genrekind deof choses.things
I'd spotted the Magic Shop from afar several times; I'd passed it once or twice, a window full of enticing little objects: magic balls, enchanted hens, marvelous cones, ventriloquist's dolls, basket trick material, normal-looking decks of cards, and all that sort of thing. MaisBut jamaisnever jeI n’avaishad songéthought àto ythere entrerenter jusqu’auuntil the jourday où,when presquealmost sanswithout prévenir,warning GipGip meme tirapulled parby lethe doigtfinger jusqu’àup to lathe vitrine,window etand sehimself comportabehaved dein tellesuch manièremanner qu’ilthat there n’y avaitwasn't plusno more d’autreother choixchoice quethan deto l’yhim there emmener.take
But I'd never thought of going in until, almost without warning, Gip pulled me by the finger to the window, and behaved in such a way that there was no choice but to take him in. PourTo diresay lathe vérité,truth jeI nenot pensaisthought mêmeeven pasnot quethat l’endroitthe place existaitexisted là,there unea devantureshopfront deof taillesize modestemodest suron RegentRegent Street,Street entrebetween lathe galeriegallery d’artof art etand lethe magasinstore oùwhere dessome poussinschicks courentrun justejust aprèsafter êtrebeing sortisout d’incubateursof incubators brevetés,patented maisbut ilit étaitwas belindeed etand bientruly là.there
To tell the truth, I didn't even think the place existed there - a modestly sized storefront on Regent Street, between the art gallery and the store where chicks run around just having emerged from patented incubators - but there it was. JeI croyaisbelieved qu’ilthat it seitself trouvaitwas located plusmore prèsnear duof the Circus,Circus ouor auat the coincorner d’Oxfordof Oxford Street,Street ouor mêmeeven àat Holborn;Holborn toujoursalways deon l’autrethe other côtéside deof lathe rue,street una peubit inaccessible,inaccessible ilhe avaithad euhad quelquesome chosething d’unof a miragemirage quantas àto sonits emplacement;location maisbut maintenant,now ilit étaitwas là,there sanswithout aucunany doute,doubt etand lethe bouttip doduplump duof the doigtfinger deof GipGip tapatapped contreagainst lathe vitre.glass
I thought it was closer to the Circus, or on the corner of Oxford Street, or even in Holborn; always across the street, a little inaccessible, he had had something of a mirage about its location; but now it was there, without a doubt, and Gip's plump fingertip tapped against the glass.