"Fell in love with an angel, did you, Shuichiro?" said the voice with some amusement. "Well, she'll be waiting for you. Hmm, one hundred minus seventeen...that's eighty three. You'll be reborn in eighty-three years." Pause: the scratching of a pen, probably marking down figures. He wasn't sure how he knew that. The voice continued, "Here's a tip. When you meet her, just accept everything she says, no matter how weird.Trust me. Women are always right."
The man in front of him nodded and vanished. Suddenly he was at the front of the line.
"Roku!" said the woman behind the ornately carved desk. "It's so good to see you!" With the speaking of his name came a rush of memory.
"Clotho!" She stood up and they embraced. Stepping back, the dead Avatar studied her. "It's been a long time! And you've lost weight!"
She positively glowed. "The underworld diet, you know, it's done wonders for my figure. I can finally fit in that cobweb dress I got..." The fate cleared her throat. "But back to business. You know the drill, of course?"
Roku nodded, thoughts suddenly clear. "If I remember correctly, the next element in the cycle is air."
Clotho nodded. "Mhmm. We've got your first few years down right, but from then on the cloth of time's a bit wrinkled...there's going to be a war, but you won't be around. We're gonna hold you in suspended animation for one hundred years, which cuts it a bit close because of that comet, but don't worry. I've looked in the Crystal Ball - upgraded of course, actual crystal balls are so last millenium - and it'll be fine." Her explanation was frustratingly vague, but it was the most she could tell him..
The Avatar's gravely lined face looked a little worried now. "Isn't there any way to stop the war from happening in the first place?"
The fate pointed to the large plasma screen behind her and pressed a button. The Crystal Ball was suddenly alive with vague shapes and indefinite blurs of color. Occasionally Roku could make out a figure, but it the dense fog in the screen was otherwise a mystery. It was perturbing to him to be on the other side of knowledge for once. The display apparently satisfied Clotho, however, and she turned back to him. "Nope. There's no way to stop the comet. Not without some serious space-time consequences, anyway." The fate bit her lip apologetically.
He nodded grimly. "I will do my duty then." She wished him luck, and he vanished.
A woman in red and white robes came to the front of the line. Clotho sighed at her pale, familiar face. "Oh,you're always a tough one...and there's been a bit of a complication, you see, he's pinned to a tree right now, so we're going to have to reincarnate you a little later than we planned..."