In a dim corner of an old shopping street stood a fortune-telling shop called Tsukikagedo. The dusty scent of age lingered in the air, and countless tarot cards hung from the ceiling, swaying gently. The shop’s owner, a fortune teller named Tsukikage, was known for his peculiar methods. Unlike others who used crystal balls or tarot decks, Tsukikage divined the future through the simplest, most mundane things—patterns in floating tea leaves, the trails left by sudden rain showers. His fortunes were cryptic but remarkably accurate, drawing clients through word of mouth.
Yet, Tsukikage harbored a secret. He had no memory of his own past. And unlike others, he could not see his own future. No one knew this but him. Why his memories had vanished remained a mystery, leaving him drifting through life like a shadow.
One quiet day, the door creaked open, and a young girl stepped inside. She looked about middle school age, carrying an old, worn backpack, her expression weary.
“I need you to help me find a lost memory,” she said softly.
Tsukikage blinked, startled. Such requests weren’t uncommon, but memory readings were difficult—and painful. He knew this better than anyone.
“Whose memory?” he asked gently.
The girl cast her eyes down and murmured, “My mother’s. She lost her memories after an accident… She doesn’t even recognize me anymore.”
A pang of empathy shot through Tsukikage’s chest. Her words stirred something deep within him—a distant echo of his own forgotten past, of the emptiness that had once engulfed him.
“I’ll help you,” he said at last. “But this won’t be easy. I’ll need your help too.”
The girl nodded firmly, and so began their unusual fortune-telling ritual.
Tsukikage chose a puddle left by the recent rain. He had the girl walk through it, observing how her footprints displaced the water. Next, he watched the way autumn leaves swirled in the breeze, listening as they whispered secrets to the air.
“Your mother’s memories haven’t completely vanished,” he finally said. “Somewhere deep inside, she still holds your shared moments. But to reconnect those threads, you’ll need to wish for it with all your heart.”
His voice, usually calm and detached, carried a warmth that surprised even himself.
As they spent more time together, Tsukikage found his own heart gradually thawing. The girl’s innocent smile, her unwavering hope, awakened long-forgotten emotions—faint but familiar.
As the divinations continued, Tsukikage began to catch glimpses of the girl’s mother’s memories. But intertwined with them were strange, fragmented visions of his own past—a home, a family, and… a woman’s shadowy figure.
Then, the revelation struck.
“It can’t be…” he whispered, stunned.
The face of the girl’s mother matched the dim figure buried deep in his forgotten memories.
“I think… I knew your mother,” he told the girl, his voice trembling.
She looked at him, wide-eyed, but there was no doubt in his words.
Determined to uncover the truth, Tsukikage decided to meet the girl’s mother. When their eyes met, a flicker of recognition sparked in hers. She stared at him, and after a moment of silence, she whispered,
“You…”
In that instant, Tsukikage’s memories flooded back like a crashing wave. He remembered everything—the love he had shared with her, the accident that had taken her memories, and his own desperate decision to erase his past in a futile attempt to protect her.
Their fates had become entangled in a cruel twist of destiny.
Now, with his memories restored, Tsukikage understood why he had become a fortune teller—to help others reconnect with the lives and futures they had lost, just as he had once tried to do for himself.
After reuniting the girl and her mother, Tsukikage resolved to begin anew. He no longer feared the future. This time, he would face it with open eyes and an open heart, ready to guide others—and himself—toward the light.
