CHAPTER 3

"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," Star sneered.

"I am doing this for everyone," Valen said, trying to prove a point.

"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," Star interjected.

"I don't think she would feel happy knowing her husband would go ahead to risk his own life either. 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," Valen added, picking up a cloak.

"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," Star said, sounding a bit concerned.

Valen stared at Star for a while. She was essentially telling the truth, but he had long thought about all those things before coming over, and now that he was here, she was simply here for his 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?"

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 he 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. He was running helter-skelter into his room to find, put, and use things, so Star would not end up ruining the plan.

"Are you even listening to me, Valen?" Star said, staring down at herself in disbelief.

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 whispering 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." he touched her chin and rubbed his thumb on Star's lips, making her blush and gulp at the act.

After they were both done, they stood in front of the mirror and admired themselves.

"Wow, I look... I never expected this," Star said, staring back at her reflection with such bewilderment.

"I told you I could change forms, but you didn't believe me. It's almost time, and I have to leave now," Valen said, and Star's heart skipped 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, on noticing her friend's troubled mind, touched her cheeks and gave her a reassuring smile.

"Stop being so worried, Star. I will be fine. I will be communicating with you as promised, okay? Thank you," he pulled Star into a brief hug before fleeing from the room.

Just as Valen was making his way out, he unexpectedly came across his mother.

"Isn't that Star? Star darling, are you leaving now without telling us? Won't you have a late dinner with us?" Seraphim asked as she watched the young lady, who still had her back turned to her. Valen bit his lips, his resolve shaking at the sound of his mother. But he 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..."

Valen fled as soon as he heard Seraphim's footsteps coming closer to him. He was praying so hard that his mother would not notice because she had sharp eyes, and anyone could tell the difference between him and Star was their build. He had a larger body frame than Star.

Seraphim shook her head with a smile, not suspecting any foul play, and headed straight to her child's room.

"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 the room was, and that made her frown. Her eyes instantly landed on the figure on the bed that was covered with a thick blanket, which made her 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 got no response. She immediately grabbed the blanket and yanked it off the figure, 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.

Her heart clenched, a rush of adrenaline crashing through her chest as the truth dawned on her.

"Valen," she whispered, before dashing out of the room.

"Valen is missing! Alert the guards! Ring the bell! Go far and wide and search for him! Valen is missing!"

Alpha Draegon rushed out of his chamber, scanning the whole place to understand what was happening, and Seraphim burst into tears in the arms of her husband.

"He put Star in his place so we wouldn't notice. I met him before he left, but I thought it was Star. I got to his bedroom and noticed that he was acting weird by staying on his bed. So when I moved closer, it was Star I found on his bed. " She sobbed harder. The fact that her child slipped with her fingers hurt her badly.

Alpha Draegon, knowing fully well where Valen would be headed, calmed his wife down and called out his guards to follow him, and they all left the house.

"That stubborn child! When I find you, you'll regret making this reckless move," he muttered under his breath as he struck the horse’s flank with a quick flick of the whip.