Shrieking Shack

These rps take place at the Shrieking Shack.

## Joseph & Krysalis

*August 10-September 1, 2014*

Krysalis was weeping on the ground, her head in her hands. She felt like a chunk of her mind was missing and without it, she could not go on in life. This misery added onto the fact that Joseph had been avoiding her for a while since they separated.

He had heard a woman crying as he walked back up to the castle, and he walked to the entrance. He could just make out her figure in the corner of the room, and he knew instantly who it was. He swore in his mind, hating that he had been placed in this position again.

Krysalis heard someone and promptly stopped crying. She looked around and pulled out her wand. "W-who is it?" Her lips were trembling because she was caught in one of her most vulnerable moments.

He inwardly swore again and lit his wand. "Me."

Krysalis felt a flicker of light shine in her mind when she saw him and a ghost of a smile showed on her face. "Joseph. It's been so long." Her cheekbones were prominent from not eating a lot since he left.

The old whirlwind of compassion and frustration was coming back full-force. "Yes, it has. What are you doing out here?"

"Nothing. That's all I've been doing since you left me." She stared into his eyes hoping that he could see how miserable she's been.

"You weren't doing much when I was with you either," he said gently.

"I don't know why, I just feel... empty inside. It's like a piece of my mind has been missing. I can't feel much anymore."

He glanced away. "You could still try to focus on others, you know."

Krysalis was in deep thought before answering. "Yes, perhaps I should. I need to try to forget whatever happened between 'us'."

He frowned. Back to forgetting.... He quickly gave her a soft smile. "Come now, Krysalis. It's time for you to focus on your future, instead of dwelling on the darkness of the past." He offered his hand to pull her up.

Krysalis reached out but then suddenly retracted her hand. "What if, I'm not ready to focus on my future? What if I can't move on?" She shook her head and went back into a protective position. "There's nothing you can do to save me now."

He took a deep breath. There was one thing he could do. It wasn't what she had chosen, but at this stage, he believed it was what she needed. He paused for a few moments, knowing all the consequences of this choice... but he had seen what had happened to her, and he could not let this go on any longer. Finally, he said, "It's because you've forgotten your past, Krysalis. It's because you've made yourself forget about James."

Krysalis looked at Joseph, confused. "Who's James?" She felt a tinge of memory return but could not recall anyone called James.

He held back a sigh and sat down beside her. He had hoped that he wouldn't have to re-tell the story... and he still held hope she would piece together the worst of it. "James Euclide was my older brother. While we were still at Hogwarts he tried to poison the Hufflepuffs. He got thrown in Azkaban for it. When he got out, he took on a new name, Samuel Dicee, and became a Wizengamot member, though no one knew who he really was. He abused the power, murdered a few times, including a Hogwarts student, and tried to kill me too... including during a battle with the Order."

Krysalis nodded thoughtfully. "And so? What does it have to do with me losing my memory?"

He bit his lip and thought through his words carefully. "During that battle, he died by your hand. After that, your remorse was so great you slipped into depression and suicidal tendencies. After one attempt landed you in St. Mungo's, you erased your memory. Ever since, you've become emotionally distant and essentially a different person. Your tendencies vanished, but your depression has worsened, with this part of you missing."

Krysalis' eyes widened and she suddenly remembered. She stood and looked Joseph in the eye. "You knew and you didn't tell me?" Her lips were trembling as she spoke. "We could still be together if it weren't for this piece of news."

He blinked up at her, surprised. He had been expecting the opposite reaction, if anything. "You were insistent when you modified your memory that this was what you wanted. I was too shocked at the time to stop you, and for a while I let it go to see its effects on you. In the end, I had to make a choice between telling you everything, not knowing what would happen, and leaving because I knew I couldn't take it anymore. Now I see that you couldn't take it anymore either."

"I said that because I thought it would be better for us. But now I just see it tore us apart. I was suicidal because it was your brother and I thought you hated me for it but I see that you hated me even though I tried to help myself stop."

"Krysalis, I was in shock the day he died. We both were. I was trying to piece together all the hard questions in the days and weeks that followed. I don't remember everything I said, or what I could have done to make you think I hated you." He stood up and gently held her face in his hands. "But I have never, ever hated you. I promise you that. You are worth so much more than he ever was."

"Can't we get back together then? Life seems lonely without you."

He bit his lip. How would this new change affect her? Thoughts about his sanity began to whirlwind through his mind. "I... I...." He kissed her gently on the lips, then pulled away. "I'm sorry, Krysalis. I cannot. Not now." Before she could reply, he turned and practically ran from the shack, inwardly cursing at himself.