"Valen, you can not be serious!"
"Do I look like a joker to you?"
"Are you out of your mind? Have you totally lost it? Whose idea was this?" Valen's best friend said in worry as she stared at Valen.
"Mine,"
"I am not surprised that it is this foolish, then."
"I am doing this for everyone."
"Nobody asked you to. Have you considered what your parents might feel or go through after finding out? Your mother would literally get hypertension because of your unwise decision."
"I don't think she would feel happy knowing her husband would go ahead to risk his own life. She literally can not do without both of us, so if either one of us leaves, she has to bear the pain. I won't feel happy knowing my father is with those beasts when I can easily overpower them if I am allowed to."
"I understand that you are praised as the most powerful man, Valen, but remember, if they figure out the truth, you might get hurt, and no one will help you. How will we know whether or not you're alive? How will we communicate with you? These are factors to consider."
Valen stared at Star for a while. She was essentially telling the truth, but she had long thought about all those things before coming over, and now that she was here, she was simply here for her request to be granted.
Silence enveloped the room for a while until Star decided to speak again. She could still see the determination on the face of her friend, and she knew whatever she had to say was only going to be an absolute waste of strength.
With a sigh, she slid down the wooden bed with her back resting against it. She lifted her left leg, folded it, and rested her hand on it for support. With helplessness and a soft voice, she asked Valen,
"What is the request that you want me to grant?"
And then Valen's lips curled up into a mischievous smile.
Back at Valen's chamber
"How do you expect this to work? What if we get caught?" Star asked her friend anxiously as she got dressed up in Valen's frame to give the effect that it was her.
It'd been two days since Valen informed her of the plan, but she had not thought about it that much until now that she was being pushed to bring it to life. It was as if Valen wasn't listening — running helter-skelter into her room to find, put, and use things so Star would not end up ruining the plan.
"Are you even listening to me, Valen?"
Valen glared at her, "Keep it down! You're going to make them suspect that something is going on."
"But why aren't you listening?" Star switched to a softer tone, and Valen finally stopped to face her.
"I am listening, but you're sounding good and pessimistic, which isn't to my liking. No one will find out if you can just sit down and act like a good girl for me." She touched her chin and winked while Star pulled out an expression that screamed, "I am disgusted by that action."
After they were both done, they stood in front of the mirror.
"Wow, I never expected this."
"I told you I could change forms. You didn't believe me. It's almost time. I have to leave now," Valen said. Star's breath paused slightly, her heart skipping a beat.
Seeing her friend put herself in this dangerous situation wasn't what she wanted and the thought of facing her family later made her skin crawl. Valen touched her cheeks.
"Stop being so worried, Star. I will be fine. I will be communicating with you as promised, okay? Thank you." She pulled Star into a brief hug before fleeing from the room, fast before Star could even process what had happened.
Just as Valen was making her way out, she unexpectedly came across her mother.
"Isn't that Star? Star darling, are you leaving now without telling us? Won't you have late dinner with us?" Seraphim asked as she watched the young lady who still had her back turned to her. Valen bit her lips, her resolve shaking at the sound of her mother. But she couldn't mess this up.
"No, luna. I will be back soon because I intend to spend the night here with Valen. You can keep my dinner."
"Oh, why..."
She fled as soon as she heard Seraphim's footsteps coming closer to her. She was praying so hard that her mother would not notice because she had sharp eyes, and anyone could tell the difference between her and Star was their build. She had a larger body frame than Star.
Seraphim shook her head with a smile, not suspecting any foul play, and headed straight to her daughter's room. She knocked before entering.
"I brought your dinner to the room. I understand that you are refusing to have dinner with us because your father banned you from going out yesterday. But please, try to understand that it's for your good, okay? Just be patient until we have managed to find a solution to all of these. Also, I met Star on my way out. She said she would be coming out soon. I will have her dinner sent as well, so she can keep you company."
Seraphim paused after noticing how unusually quiet her daughter and that made her frown. Her eyes instantly landed on the figure on the bed that was covered with the thick blanket.
While she understood that it was likely to be the usual reaction, her daughter was, most of the time, unusual too whenever something bad happened, it was strange for her to be in bed. She was always out of bed, even when sick. She would rather sit down, or stroll around the room while vehemently expressing her displeasure.
This caused her to straighten her back and approach the bed.
"Valen dear, are you alright? You've been mute for a while, that's unlike you." She said, but no response. With a pull, the blanket was off the body, and Star came into view. She looked unusual too.
Seraphim released a soft gasp as she eyed her appearance.
"Star? What are you doing here? Didn't you just —?" She pointed at the door, and then it dawned on her what had happened.
"Valen." She mumbled. She felt a rush of adrenaline and dashed out of the bedroom. She started shouting on her way out.
"Valen is missing! Alert the guards! Ring the bell! Go far and wide and search for her! Valen is missing!!"
Alpha Draegon rushed out because of the news.
"What do you mean she is missing?"
Seraphim burst into tears in the arms of her husband, "She put Star in her place so we wouldn't notice. I met her before she left but I thought it was Star. I got to her bedroom and I noticed that she was acting weird by staying on her bed. So when I moved closer, it was Star I found on her bed. " She sobbed harder. The fact that her daughter slipped with her fingers hurt her badly.
Alpha Draegon knew what she was up to and quickly calmed his wife down, promising to go and look for her. Knowing fully well where Valen would have headed, he called out for guards to follow him, and they all left the house.
"That stubborn child, if I get my hands on you, I will make sure you pay!"He muttered under his breath as he struck the horse's flank with a quick flick of the whip. The beast surged forward, hooves pounding the ground in a thunderous gallop as dust kicked up behind them. He leaned low, eyes fixed on the distance. They had to make it in time, or else he would really lose it.