Jocu could hear Rachel and Sasha crying from the other side of the realm and he put his head down in sadness. It had only been 10 minutes since he explained the news and they had not stopped crying! They were inconsolable!

"Isn't there another way Jocu?" Vivo asked sadly, now seeing the girls' tears.

"Vivo…even though they are strong, we cannot let them be harmed. ESPECIALLY since Damus has taken such a liking to them." Came the calm reply.

"But they like it here so much," Amio said, walking in.

"I know that young one. But this is for their own good." Jocu replied, now remorsefully walking away.

"What if they call you?" Amio said. That made Jocu stop and pause. He then slowly turned around.

"Jocu…you told them if they ever needed you badly enough to call you three times. What if they call you?" Vivo said urgently. At that moment, they heard pained and saddened cries!

"JOCU!" Rachel yelled. "Please come back! PLEASE!"

Jocu winced and turned away, trying to keep himself calm and remind himself that he had to protect them, even if it meant never being with them again.

"That was only once," Jocu said, beaded sweat forming.

"JOCU! PLEASE! We need you!" Sasha cried, tears pouring down her face. Jocu began gritting his teeth, now running over and clutching at the crystal ball. Their tears and calls were breaking his heart.

"That was two Jocu…" Amio said softly.

"But if you erased their memories, how can this happen?!" Vivo said in shock.

"Because I made sure that the process would be slow. I didn't want it to be sudden," Jocu whispered sadly. But all three tickle monsters eyes were widened at the very last call of all!

"JOCU! PLEASE COME BACK! WE LOVE YOU!" Rachel yelled, now holding her stomach from crying so hard.

"WE NEED YOU GUYS! WE DO LOVE YOU! COME BACK!" Sasha said, her voice going hoarse from yelling.

"That's three Jocu! That's three!" Amio said. But when he and Vivo turned, they saw Jocu running on all fours as fast as he could towards the portal to get to Earth. But both could only smile. They knew their brother would never let anyone down; that's why he was their hero along with their father.

Meanwhile, Rachel and Sasha collapsed on the bed, still crying and weak from their tears. But before they could say another word, two pairs of large arms picked them up and began kissing them on their foreheads.

"Shhh, shh shh shh shh. I'm here. I'm here," he soothed. But he couldn't say anything else as both girls glomped him and gave him sisterly kisses on his face and hugged him tightly. He could feel their tears dripping down his chest and how wet and sticky their faces has become.

"Jocu we're so glad you're here!" Sasha said, now wiping her face.

"We thought we lost you forever," Rachel said sadly.

"But you didn't lose me; I'm right here and I told you both that I would always watch over you," he crooned in their ears.

"But still! We thought you weren't coming back!" Sasha said, her eyes welling up with tears again.

"Oh Sasha, be calm my dear before you make yourself sick." He said worriedly, now pulling them even closer to his chest and using his tail to grab a blanket and wrap it around all three of them.

"B-But…" Rachel felt a gentle clawed finger to her lips.

"Hush now…it is alright. I'm here." He said, now nuzzling her behind her ears, making her giggle a bit.

"But you will eventually leave." Rachel said, now looking away. It broke Jocu's heart and he turned her back to face him with one of his arms.

"Listen you two…the original plan for me to wipe your memories was because I want you safe. But I can't do that if you both are going to be this heartbroken. It tears me up," he said in a slightly teasing tone, trying to lift up their spirits.

Both girls smiled a little, but not much. He chuckled a bit and then began cuddling them to his chest and the girls could feel his energy and love filling them up again, now replacing their sorrow.

"I'm here you two." He said, now making them look at him.

"But Jocu, promise that you won't leave us again!" Rachel said, now gently grabbing his face in desperation.

"Yes promise us! We love you all like family and we don't ever want to be away from you!" Sasha said, now leaning up to where they were both looking at him in the eye.

"Rachel…Sasha…I…"

"Jocu, promise us! Promise that you won't leave us again!" Sasha said in desperation, now nuzzling him in his cheek.

"No matter what happens!" Rachel added, now nuzzling him more too.

"Girls…" he said gently, now feeling ticked by the nuzzles.

"Jocu, promise us," Rachel coaxed more, still nuzzling him and now nuzzling his neck.

"Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeease!" Sasha added, now feeling more desperate and hugging his neck.

Jocu heaved a heavy sigh and ran a hand down his face. If these two were going to fight this hard then he couldn't just leave them. He loved them too and didn't want to see them in pain from their tears and sorrow. Seeing them that upset and desperate made him feel awful as well.

"I promise. But on one condition!" he said.

"Anything!" They both said simultaneously. They were happy to do anything to keep their friends from leaving.

"That you both stop your tears and let me hug you until the sun comes up," he smiled, now letting a tail stretch and get a wet cloth from the bathroom. Once it came back, he wiped their faces and the girls laughed in true happiness, now glomping him where he couldn't even stand up!

"We aren't afraid of Damus; if he comes near us…"

"I'll finish him with one blow," Jocu said lowly, now making the girls shudder. Jocu was rarely violent but he was very protective around those he loved. "Now come here you two."

And with that, they all three hugged each other as hard as they could. Not only was Jocu back, but their bond was stronger than ever! But after a few minutes, the girls began falling asleep. But they didn't want Jocu to leave because they feared he would disappear again.

"J-Jocu please stay with us," Rachel asked, now somewhat fearful.

"Do not be concerned girls; I will stay with you as you rest." He said, now laying down and letting them snuggle against his massive frame. He curled the blanket more around them and laid his head down to rest as he saw them sleep.

Meanwhile, Damus was watching and very curious about the entire incident.

"It appears the humans have changed Jocu's mind. Perfect." Damus chuckled.

"My king…surely you did not want to destroy the humans?" a young voice asked. He turned and saw it was a young female Nitian who was still learning their ways.

"I do not want to destroy them. I simply wish to connect to them through their nightmares. King Lauhin, Jocu, and his brothers pose a formidable threat, but I still have my secret weapon." Damus laughed.

"And…what is that?" the young one asked.

"A sample of the girls' tears. One drop of their tears, mixed with the cries I harness from their nightmares will weaken Jocu significantly! If I can at least weaken him, then they will have no one to protect them." Damus chuckled darkly, now letting his yellow eyes peer into the night. "Once I have them…I will trade them for one thing and one thing only!"

"What would that be?!"

"You will see," came the dark reply, making everyone in the room shudder.

guestsurprise: Jocu came back for his girls; he would never abandon his friends. Hope you all enjoyed it!

newbienovelistRD: Awesome story, Amiga! You always do great work! Oh! Let me know if you've seen the new series Vampirina! :D