Welcome to chapter five. I honestly think that this has been the shortest time between updates I've ever had. --' Yes you may hunt me down and shoot me. But I promise to try and update more! Honest! It's summer here so I should be able to write more. But there was a key word there. Sigh. Nonetheless, I present you,

Reflections aren't always what you think.

xxx

The fear, doubt and hopelessness of the situation engulfed him. His friends were dying and there was nothing he could do. What's more is that this was his fault. He couldn't save them. Now not only were his friends in danger, but the world. But there was nothing he could do to stop it. Was this really such a good idea after all?

Yugi woke. His situation in his bubble had not improved dramatically, if it had improved at all. Joey was right across from him and still unconscious.

'So I hadn't dreamt it. One of my best friends has been captured!' he thought sadly and sighed. Amun wasn't anywhere in sight either.

'I'm all alone.'

Yugi tried to stand up, but felt his energy decrease.

'That's funny. Why do I feel so weak?' Yugi wondered as he tried unsuccessfully to stand up again. With a sigh he decided to give up and just sit there. As he looked around at the others in their bubbles, everyone was exactly where they were before he left, except Amun.

'I wonder where Amun has gone? Nothing has changed, except.' Yugi thought but his thoughts were interrupted by Amun's appearance.

"Where were you?" Yugi asked.

"Oh. Um. I was here all. Along?" He groped for an explanation.

Yugi gave him a questioning look, but whatever he was about to say was lost as the bubbles gave a lurch forward towards an eye that suddenly appeared.

"What's happening?" Yugi cried out as his bubble moved. As the bubble continued to thrust him roughly from side to side, Yugi's eyes widened with realization. He gave out a horrible cry at the thought.

"Dartz must have all the souls he needs!" exclaimed Yugi. "We're too la-"

"Of course. Oh no." Amun said, leaving his statement hanging.

'Dartz is just about to duel the Pharaoh and Kaiba. He's going to use Yugi and his friends against him!' Amun thought sadly.

Before either of them could do anything Yugi was taken from his bubble in a brilliant flash of light, as was Joey, Mia and Pegasus. The four of them faded from view.

'Oh no, and I didn't get to warn him! I had better go and give Hathor and Isis an update. At least they know this had to happen. Let's just hope I don't run into Bet again.'

xxxx

"Dartz must have all the souls he needs!" Yugi cried out. "We're too la-"

"Of course. Oh no." Amun answered but left whatever else he was going to say unsaid.

Yugi watched as the bright light that had to be the Leviathan devours the souls of many people. He looked around quickly and was glad to note that his friends were still there, safe and whole for the time being. But as he was glad to note that, another brilliant flash temporarily blinded him. Amun faded from his view, as did Joey and all the others. Then all he could see was mist. There was obviously a light coming from somewhere, but where he couldn't tell. All he could see was this heavy mist. Whispers of darkness and fog crept into his mind and tried to take over. He looked around but this place was very similar to the Shadow Realm, but not as dark.

"Where am I?" he wondered aloud as he subconsciously decided to look around.

After a few minutes of aimless wandering he came across a small figure in the distance.

"Hey," he called out running up to it.

When he came within a few meters of it he noticed something. This figure was him! But him when the seal was in 'control' of him.

'I thought it wasn't my fault! I was asked, or more commanded. I did it for the Pharaoh, and I didn't even decided to activate it!' he frantically thought, squeezing his eyes close as his mirror image sized him up.

"So. What does that have to do with it? You still played it, didn't you? You still made the choice to play it, didn't you? The battle still could have gone ill, right? The Pharaoh could have lost and you would both be here, wouldn't you?" a voice, his voice drifted though his thoughts.

Yugi's eyes snapped open.

"What?" he half yelled in disbelief.

"Face it, you're just as evil as the Pharaoh!" his mirror image snarled.

"But Yami's not evil!" Yugi defended himself with.

"Your right," the image purred. "That must mean you are. You two are opposites right?" his reflection sweetly asks innocently.

Yugi's eyes widened.

"No!" Yugi yelled back, absolutely sure of himself.

His reflection paused, realizing that the whole your evil routine wouldn't work on him.

"Your right again. That was a bit harsh. You can't be evil; hikari. But it is your fault Joey is here! It's your fault that your friends are in danger and suffering! You couldn't protect them! Or save them. It's your fault that this mess happened, and they were dragged into it! It's your fault that Mia ran away! IT'S YOUR FAULT THAT THE PHARAOH COULDN'T GO BACK!" spiritedly Yugi's reflection blamed Yugi with all those untrue things.

"No," Yugi said, but with not as much conviction as before.

It wasn't true, and he knew that, deep down. But still. He couldn't help but think; what if his reflection was right?

xxxx

Yugi's reflection walked away, satisfied with what he had done. So it was the blame game Yugi was contending with then. That suited him well. Yugi was in reality standing stock still in the middle of the playing field, disguised by a newly played suite of armor. Three other 'knights' surrounded him. The finale duel between Dartz and Yami had begun, and it wasn't going good for him, or Kaiba, who had decided to crash the party. But back in Yugi's mind, the mist still swirled and eddied around 'him'. He was thinking about what his 'reflection' had said.

'That can't be. It can't all be my fault.' He thought.

"But it is," a bodiless voice told him. His own bodiless voice. Yugi disregarded the fact he was still hearing his own voice. He was too busy trying to defend himself.

"No, I mean, I didn't ask nor force the Pharaoh to play the seal originally. And I even tried to stop him!" Yugi answered.

"But you failed. He still played it and because you couldn't stop him, his evil was realized and now your friends are in more danger." The voice answered again.

"But how is that my fault?" Yugi asked, his self doubt evident in his voice.

"How?" the voice mimicked mockingly. "Because you couldn't stop the Pharaoh a new evil was released. He may have reverted back now, but that doesn't reverse the evil and damage already done. Also, your friends are repetitively put in danger, because of you. You are powerless to protect them. You can't do it. You need the Pharaoh to do it for you. And even then he can't. And that's because of you and you can't even do a thing to save the world. It's always the Pharaoh, or Joey, or Tea. But never you! You're hopeless. All you've done is get in the way, caught, or stood there," the voice answered disgusted at him.

Yugi looked down. As much as he hated to admit it, it made sense.

"He's right. I've hurt and disappointed my friends and I can't even do anything to help them or the rest world. The only thing I've ever done is got in the way. Or used as a hostage. Like with Marik. I was used as bait and it really is my fault that Joey is now trapped," he thought, miserably.

"Yes, and with that, you betrayed them," the voice had a hard time hiding his glee as his sabotage was working. The kid was breaking! But deep within Yugi he knew something was wrong. He knew he wasn't to be blamed for this, any of this. His mind and heart was too overcome with guilt to realise this. In Yugi's mind, a little voice of reason tried to pierce through the gloom.

'You know that voice is wrong. How could any of this be your fault? And you know our friends are stubborn. They would have come along even if you tied 'em down and ran as fast as you could.' It told him.

"No, you know this is your fault," the bodiless voice cut in.

'How can we believe something you can't see? You know it's just that reflection. And reflections are the opposite of you. The same, but completely different!' his conscience told him.

Yugi looked up, slowly and shakily. The voice of reason won and it couldn't help but smirk. Yugi in return just thought, 'Oh great. Now I'm referring to myself in not only third person, but as two beings. My sanity's so going down the drain as I think.'

The fog closed in. Another voice in his head whispered too him,

"So your going to believe something that calls itself apart of you? You know this is your fault. You know you could have done things better. How can you just deny all that just to make yourself feel better?"

Reason was lost again and left poor Yugi very confused and torn between emotions. All the voices left, leaving only guilt and doubt behind. It was as if Yugi was lost to himself, until a resounding boom bounced around him and the world seemed to shake and for a few moments the fog lifted. Yugi looked up to see a duel-taking place! But Kaiba and the Pharaoh were on the other side. He was against them.

"Oh no," was all he could think as his suspicions were confirmed as Dartz introduced him as a Mirror Knight.

xxxx

The fog slide back into view, but it was too late. Yugi snapped back to his normal self.

'It was Dartz trying to control me. Well that won't work anymore!' he thought.

The fog seemed even lighter then before. Before there had been shadows, but now they were lifted.

"Now my knights, attack the Pharaoh!" Dartz voice swam through the fog.

'What! No! I can't! I won't!' he desperately thought as he resisted the impulse to raise the sword he didn't know and couldn't see he had. He fought hard and in the end won. He didn't attack!

"It seems that he is still loyal to you, even after what you did. Well, he won't be like that for." Dartz's voice drifted through the fog once more as Yugi fell to his knees, exhausted.

'Man, I thought I felt weak before. But now,' he left it hanging as he lapsed into unconsciousness. When he woke up the fog was still in place and he could faintly hear Dartz and Yami arguing. Or was it dueling? His mind was still fuzzy. He stood up, wobbling a bit. What was Dartz's plan? Why was he doing this?

'Duh, he's a psycho,' the voice of reason, who seemed to have returned.

"Yeah, so says a voice in my head," Yugi thinks to the voice. After that thought he sweatdrops. What was this supposed to be???

'Oh yeah I've defiantly lost it. I'm now talking to myself,' he thinks.

'But at least it's better then before,' reason answers. Yugi grimaces.

'Again says the voice.' He says as the mist starts to clear for a bit.

Through the mist he could faintly see something heading towards someone. Yugi gasped. 'Oh no, someone's attacking Joey!' he desperately thinks as he instinctively moves a shield he didn't know he had to protect his friend. The shield shatters but Yugi is otherwise unharmed.

'Whoa, that was close. I wonder what that was?' A few uneventful minutes pass as Yugi wonders through the mist. There's nothing. Once more the mist clears completely.

"You have to attack them! It's the only way to win!" Kaiba shouts at Yami from the opposite side of the field.

'Oh no. Of course. Dartz has control of us. Yami must be afraid that if he attacks us we'll be lost forever. But Hathor said I would be against him or something. Is this what she meant? Was she trying to tell me we would be ok? Yes, that's it! She was saying that now is the time to attack me. Or us. Us?' he concludes very quickly, dismissing the 'us' comment.

"You have to attack," Yugi shouts out to Yami. "It's the only way! We'll be fine and if you don't attack you'll lose!"

"But if the you're attacked your souls may be lost forever," Yami argues back

"Trust me," is all Yugi replies with. 'Please, this time.' The mist rolls back in. Leaving Yugi cut off from the duel again. Some time later, Dartz's voice drifts through again.

"All of these people gave in to their dark side, and were taken by the Seal of Orichalcos. They're evil, just like all humans, which is why I was chosen to wipe them out."

'Not everyone! That's hardly fair. I know Joey wouldn't play the seal! He isn't here because of that he must have lost admirably, and without the choice of the seal. Kaiba wouldn't, nor have any of my friends that have dueled given in. Save Yami, but I know he's learnt his lesson! Not one of them, save Yami who knows better now, gave into their dark sides! And what of all the people who were challenged and had nothing to do with the seal? They could have never known of it!' Yugi thinks fiercefully.

"And what of you? You sacrificed yourself to save not only your friends, but also the world! You were cut of from that duel; you are one of the bravest! You defiantly didn't give in!" a divine, familiar, female voice penetrates through the mist.

Yugi peers up to where the ceiling or sky should be. Of course, all he can see is the fog.

'Well this can get really depressing after a while,' he thinks as he begins to walk around.

"I'm not as gullible as these dorks. Besides, if it is real they won't mind vanishing here!" Kaiba's voice cuts through and for the finale time the mist clears to reveal the duel. It was Kaiba's turn and he orders Mirror Force Dragon to use its special effect to wipe out Dartz's monsters. Yami steps forward but Kaiba holds him back telling him to relax.

"Yugi," Yami calls out sadly.

"We'll be fine!" he replies with a smile. At that the mist returns with full force, but doesn't stay long as Kaiba's attack hits and everything goes black.

xxxx

"Yugi, Yugi? Are you ok? Hello, Yugi?" a new voice drifted through to his senses. Yugi opened his eyes. Amun was staring at him intently.

"Oh, are you ok?" Amun asks again. Yugi sits up. After a few seconds of blinking stupidly he answers.

"Yeah," shakily he says, his voice becoming clearer. "Yeah. What happened?"

"I dunno. But you've been back for about three minutes now. You sure your ok?" Amun asks worried.

"Yeah, I'm sure," Yugi, answers, his voice nice and strong again.

"Good, now." Amun starts, before his bubble is dragged away and eaten by the eye!

"Amun! Amun!" Yugi calls out. There is no answer. Amun is gone, eaten by the Leviathan.

'Great. Just great. Now Amun's gone too and there was nothing I could do! How many more people are going to be hurt before this is over? I just hope the Pharaoh wins soon!' he thinks sadly. He looks over at Joey. His back was to him but Yugi could tell he was finally awake!

"Joey?" he calls. Then happily continues. "Joey!"