Alex Lin stepped out of Mrs. Park's bakery into a late-morning haze that smelled faintly of roasted chestnuts and burnt paper. His mask hid a grin. Yesterday he'd been nobody; today he was the city's most talked-about mystery. And he still hadn't had breakfast.
Beside him, Detective Sam Wu consulted his notebook, now bulging with tickets and scribbles that made no sense. "Right," Sam said, clearing his throat. "So. We have three questions: What exactly is the Tuesday Fish? What does that vision really mean? And where can I get a decent cup of coffee that doesn't float away?"
Mina Q drifted forward, scarf trailing behind like a comet's tail. "Let's start with the Tuesday Fish." She pointed to a battered sign hanging over a narrow doorway: The Tuesday Fish Tavern. Below it, someone had scrawled in chalk: "Ask no questions—just eat!"
Alex raised an eyebrow. "I thought that was a side quest to avoid?"
Mina shrugged. "Sometimes the best clues hide in the things you're told to ignore."
Sam nodded at the tavern's door. "Shall we?"
Step Inside the Tavern
They entered, and the air snapped colder—like walking into a freezer full of lunging shadows. The tavern's walls were lined with tanks of glowing water. Each held a single fish, all labeled Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday… but only one said Today.
Mina's eyes flicked to the tank marked Today. Inside, a little koi with shimmering scales stared at them as if it knew everything. A bell on the bar tinkled, and a tall bartender in a dust-smudged vest approached.
"Welcome, strangers. You seek the secret of the Tuesday Fish?" he asked, voice low as gravel.
Alex nodded. "We're looking for answers."
The bartender poured three cups of tea from a silver kettle hung on a rack of antlers. The liquid glowed soft green. "Drink first," he said. "Questions later."
Sam hesitated—but when he sniffed the aroma, he couldn't resist. One sip, and the world tilted sideways. The koi in the tank rippled, and Sam swore it winked.
Alex took a careful gulp. The tea tasted like memory and possibility. His vision of the masked courtroom flashed in his mind: the question, "What is the point of existence?" He shivered. He had to know more.
The Price of Curiosity
When the three set down their cups, the bartender's smile was thin. "Now you ask."
Mina spoke softly. "What is the Tuesday Fish's purpose?"
The bartender's gaze turned distant. "Every Tuesday Fish carries a fragment of fate. You catch it, you glimpse a choice you must make. Some see triumph, some see ruin. Few dare to swallow the truth."
Alex frowned. "So what happens if you grab one?" He pointed at the fish labeled Today.
The bartender raised an eyebrow. "You don't grab it. You beckon it. Then it decides if you're worthy."
Sam frowned. "How do we beckon it?"
Mina reached into her red scarf and produced a golden fluted spoon—a family heirloom, she said. She held it over the tank and whispered in an unknown tongue. The koi swam forward, tiny ripples echoing like whispers.
A Glimpse Beneath the Surface
The tank's glass shimmered. Alex peered in and saw not the koi but a vision of himself standing atop a crumbling tower, mask in one hand and a banner reading "Choice" in the other. Below, armies of orderly bureaucrats and reckless misfits clashed in a battlefield of light and shadow.
He blinked. The fish nuzzled the spoon. Mina deftly scooped it up and placed it in a small bowl of water on the bar. "Now drink," she instructed Alex and Sam.
Alex lifted his bowl. The koi stared at him, scales dancing. He inhaled deeply—and the vision struck:
He was walking a lonely path between two doors: one etched with golden runes promising safety, the other black as midnight, inscribed only with a question mark. From behind, a chorus of familiar voices cheered and jeered. He hesitated.
He looked at Sam, at Mina, at Gramps's voice in his head. Then he reached for the door of midnight.
He jerked awake, nearly dropping the bowl. Sam startled too, eyes wide as saucers. Mina laid a calming hand on his arm.
"Prophetic choice," the bartender murmured. "You see your crossroads. Soon you must decide."
A New Mission Emerges
Sam wiped his mouth, heart pounding. "That… was intense. But what does it mean?"
Mina's smile was half-sad. "Right now, we don't know. But I've studied fish magic—I know the prophecy marks our next path. We must discover what lies behind that door of fate."
Alex set his bowl down gently. "So our mission is…?"
Mina looked toward the tavern's back door, carved with runes that glowed faintly. "Find the Gate of Midnight. Only there can you choose your destiny."
He felt his aura stir. Gramps's voice crackled with excitement: At last, a real quest! Don't trip. Or do—makes it more fun.
The Road Ahead
They left the tavern with new purpose. Outside, the City of Shadows hummed with life—shopkeepers unbarricading doors, streetlights resuming normal blinking, and pigeons pecking the crumbs Alex had accidentally scattered.
Sam closed his notebook. "Gate of Midnight. Right. Any idea where that is?"
Mina consulted a small compass that spun uncontrollably before settling on a direction. "Northwest, beyond the Clocktower gardens. But beware—the path is guarded by the Order of Forgotten Promises."
Alex grinned beneath his mask. "Sounds like they could use some Foolish interference."
Sam sighed, smiling despite himself. "Of course it does."
As they set off, Alex glanced at Mina and Sam and felt something he had never known: the certainty that, together, they might just bend fate without breaking it. Or break it a little. And for a Fool, that was the ultimate adventure.