Yami: Unseeing Eyes
Yami sat alone on his bed, looking at the spot that Yugi had disappeared from the night before. 'Oh, Yugi... where did you go to...?' he thought, tears forming in his eyes. Quickly he blocked them. "No..." he said quietly. "It's my fault. I'm his guardian; I should have protected him! It's all my fault!" This time, the tears came. "I was supposed to look after him! I was supposed to be his friend and protector! And now, I've failed him!" Yami buried his face in his hands, and closed his eyes, but the moment he closed them, he saw those shiny eyes looking at him, so he snapped them open. "Pull yourself together..." he muttered. 'You should be punished.' said a small voice in the back of his head.

Silently, he pulled out the knife he had been carrying, and looked at it's short silver blade. It reflected things, but the reflections were distorted. He placed it on his wrist, and not closing his eyes against the pain, drew the sharp blade across his wrist. After a few moments, beads of blood bubbled up, then burst, running down his forearm. He watched the red lines tumble down his arm for a little while, then repeated the process, a little underneath the first cut. Soon, his arm was a mess of blood, and he went to wash it off, and bandage up the arm. Thinking back on it, it was a stupid thing to do; tomorrow, the others would ask him how the slashes got there.

Yami's POV

So what? It's just a little cut. Well, a few. And I deserve the punishment. I didn't protect Yugi like I said I would. Now he's gone, and I never got to tell him... I'll find him. First thing tomorrow morning, I'll go and search for him. And I won't fail next time... if there is a next time. I just wish... I could sense him. Before, I could always feel him presence, however far way he was. Now half my mind is just empty. I've lost all my powers, but I don't really care about that. Half of my soul has been torn away; I must find the other half...

He drifted off to sleep, back in bed.

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Joey's POV.

I'm worried about Yami. He's so secretive. He never really tells us anything. There's more to him than just the powerful former-Pharaoh. Much, much more. And I wish he'd tell us. Then there's Yugi. Yami's so protective of him, and it's a real shock just to have him disappear from under Yami's nose. I'll go help him tomorrow. In more ways than one; I think he just needs a real friend at the moment.

Bakura's POV

Stupid... shit... kuso... bloody... Ryou... Ryou, please come back! Please, please! I always act like I don't need him; like I don't care. But I love the little guy, however wimpy. He's just... sweet. Ra, am I going soft? I'm gonna find that kid. Don't care how long it takes... five-thousand more millennia... don't care.

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Yami was out early the next morning, wandering idly through the streets of Domino, looking for Yugi. Once, he was asked for an autograph, by some young duellist. He'd signed the paper quickly, and walked on. At least that kid was happy.

Eventually, he came to the park, which was empty. He went and sat on one of the swings, his toes brushing the ground. He looked up, then jumped to his feet. There was Yugi, standing against a tree. Yami rubbed his eyes, and looked again, but he was gone. 'I swear he was there...' he thought, walking quickly over to the tree. On the ground was a note. "You die soon, Yami." was all it said. It was unmistakably Yugi's handwriting. He screwed the paper up in his pocket, and walked home before he began to cry.

To his surprise, Joey was waiting for him. "Hi, Yami." he said quietly. "Hello." Yami said, even more quietly, before opening the door, and gesturing for Joey to follow him in. Not thinking, Yami took off his coat, and dropped it to the ground by the door. He went into the front room, dropped into a chair, and cried, face in hands. Joey followed him. "Yami, it's alright." he said, putting a comforting arm around him. "We know you're upset. Heck; Bakura was acting the same way about Ryou!" None of this seemed to help. "There's something more now. What's wrong?" With damp hands, Yami showed Joey the note, and explained. "This is serious, Yami!" said Joey, alarmed. Suddenly, he caught sight of the knife that Yami had been carrying. He pulled it out of the belt-loop. "Yami, what are you doing with this?" he asked. "It... it m... makes me feel... s... safe." said Yami between sobs. "I think it's been doing more than that." said Joey, eyeing the bandages on Yami's arm. "You're to stop this now. It won't help." Joey said sternly. Yami said nothing.

Half-angry, half-sympathetic, Joey pulled Yami to his feet, and pulled his hands away from his face. He looked into Yami's damp violet-crimson eyes for a few minutes, then hit him, hard. Yami reeled backwards, clutching a red cheek. Joey grabbed his wrist, and pulled him back. "Come on, Yami. Snap out of it. I'm your friend, no matter what happens to you, I'll be there to catch you, and pull you back to your senses. None of this; not crying, not cutting yourself, not anything is going to help Yugi. You're just going to have to stand up, like when you duel. You're... well, you're not seventeen, like you look, but however old you are, you're old enough to cope. Coping is the first step to bravery. The last step will be saving Yugi, and you have several steps to master yet. I'll be there to help you along the way. Ok?"

Yami nodded, quietly. "Yes. Thank you Joey. But... please say nothing to the others. Tea and Tristan won't understand properly, however much Tea talks about friendship, this is a different kind." Joey nodded in agreement.