And we're back with another chapter. Considering that FEH is out, I was considering making a fanfiction about ALL the Heroes in that Universe. Don't know if I will yet. Anyways, on to the chapter –ArcanaHermit

Chapter 20: Prank (Corrin x Orochi)

"So…I assume you were responsible for that incident with the snake?" Corrin asked the fortune teller sitting on the chair, sipping her tea in the garden.

Despite pretending to have an aura of denial and formality, her sly smile said it all for Corrin. "Whatever could you mean?"

The look Corrin gave her was, at least in Orochi's opinion, absolutely priceless. She dropped all pretense of not being the culprit and started laughing.

"I thought you said no pranks that could me." He said, not exactly amused, but not exactly angry either. He supposed he'd gotten used to the playful nature of his wife at this point.

"Oh trust me, love. That snake was defanged and tamed. There was no danger whatsoever." She said, still chuckling from the prank she pulled. Despite being his husband and enjoying his affectionate gestures, there was nothing quite like the befuddled look on his face when one of her tricks managed to fire off on him. Whether it was a simple stink in his shirt or a frog in his pants, she always kept him on his toes, for better or worse.

Corrin just let out a loud sigh, as he always does. He decided to go behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders and began rubbing her shoulders, letting out a loud, content sigh from her.

"Ahhhh, Orochi feels good." She said, as his hands continue to rub her shoulders thoroughly, but of the many things that could be said of her, Orochi was no fool. "But Orochi thinks you have an ulterior motive for doing this. Spill it."

Corrin simply remained silent as he continued his massage, with Orochi suddenly feeling too relaxed and comfortable to question him any further. He was getting almost disturbingly good at these massages lately. Out of her sight however, Corrin had a rare devious grin on his face, something that his dear wife rubbed off on him. As he continued his massage and she relaxed further, he took the time to pull out something out of his pocket. It was what appeared to be a rat, and he silently placed it on her shoulder before pulling back.

"Ah, that was comforting." She said, not noticing the object on her shoulder. "I suppose I should be sorry for the prank?"

"Not really. I'm used to it by now." Corrin said nonchalantly. "By the way, what's that on your shoulder?"

Orochi wonder what Corrin was referring to, until she turned her head and saw the supposed rat on her shoulder. Her eyes widened and she let out a loud, high pitched scream before immediately grabbing the rat and throwing it with all her strength.

At that point, Corrin lost it and let out a laugh of his own. He had to admit that pranking had its own devious sort of fun, especially when he wasn't in the receiving end of one. Orochi immediately turned around to glare at him, but he was too busy laughing at his successful prank to care.

"That was really rude." She said, half playful and half angry. "Relaxing Orochi like that so you can put a rat on my shoulder. That thing better not have any diseases."

"I-it's not…" Corrin said, taking a deep breath to recover from his laughing fit. "It was a clay sculpture made to look like a rat. I suppose that makes us even."

"No it does not." Orochi said, pouting. She was staring daggers at her husband, the glint in her eyes suggesting that she already has her next prank planned. "What goes around comes around. Expect my reply to be swift…"

"I don't recall starting this little war of ours." He said defensively, raising his hands.

"Doesn't matter, dear love, an eye for an eye."

After about a few seconds of glaring, she giggled and then laughed alongside him. Despite their little pranks, it was always out of playfulness instead of maliciousness. Orochi told Corrin that any other lord would heavily disapprove of her pranks, and that she was glad he was not only tolerable, but willing to have some fun of his own as well.

"Ah…but seriously, enough pranks for now. I'd like to enjoy my tea in peace." She said. Corrin nodded and sat opposite her and poured himself a cup, sipping the hot tea alongside her.

"So…done any fortune telling lately?" He asked inquisitively. Her fortunes were an invaluable asset in the war effort, whether is was a vague hint about an enemy location or an upcoming attack. It also had a much more mundane use as well, as her forewarnings of tripping and sudden rain have been very helpful to him as well.

"Oh, a little scrying here, a little horoscope reading there." She said nonchalantly. "I did have quite the odd message from the gods though. Quite odd indeed."

"What was this message?"

"Oh, just a little present for the both of us." She said, rubbing her belly. "I believe I'll be with child soon."

Corrin nearly spat out the tea he's drinking. One would think that that would be good news, but she was with child in the middle of a deadly war, the worse possible time. The concern on his face was so readable to Orochi, who merely laughed at him.

"Well, I was expecting you to be at least a little bit happy." Orochi admitted. "Why are you so worried? Is having a child so horrifying to you?"

"N-no, it's not that." He said, trying to compose himself after being told such a shocking piece of news. "It's good news. But, are you sure it's ok to just have a child in the middle of this war? We'll be in danger constantly and-"

"Corrin."

Orochi quiet and calm tone of voice made the young lord quiet himself. Whenever she was serious like this, he always knew to let her say her piece before anything else.

"I swear, you're always such a worrywart." She said in her playful tone, trying to lighten the mood. "I know it's dangerous to have a kid in the middle of this mess, but that doesn't mean we can't handle it. Besides, I've dug a little deeper into our future, and I can assure you it's going to be a happy one."

"Are you sure?" He asked inquisitively.

Orochi scoffed. "Never question Orochi. My predictions are always right. Speaking of predictions…"She said, her scoff turning into a smirk. "Prepare to see something quite frightful in your future. Remember, you can't prank a woman with child, but that rule doesn't apply to me."

Corrin groaned. Knowing her, she's probably going to take full advantage of that to make him wary every during every waking second. Orochi doesn't exactly hold back with her pranks, as the snake incident proved.

"Just try not to go too far, ok?" Corrin said pleadingly.

"Oh sure. I won't push it…much." Orochi giggled. She knew that there's a limit to how far her pranks go, and she knew never to cross that line. But anything before that is fair game to her.

The rest of their day was spent talking about their future child, and how they would plan for both the pregnancy and the baby. After a while, she stood up. "My foretelling also told me one more thing. We're having our child tonight."

For the second time today, Corrin nearly spat his drink. "I…You mean…" He looked up to see that she was blushing as well, though looking far less embarrassed than him.

"My horoscopes are always accurate." She said before leaving the garden, giving him one last smile. After finishing his tea, he meekly and quietly followed her.

And done. Next we're going to have two Nohrians back to back. Until then folks –ArcanaHermit