Disclaimer: After all these chapters…I still don't own Yugioh. Isn't that a shame?

Author's Notes:. Well, here we are..last chappie! And now TBAA is going off the air. Oh, the world is coming to an end around us! *SOB* *Sniff* Thank you to everyone who has read and reviewed this fic. Thank you for all your nice comments. I hope you all enjoyed reading this fic as much as I enjoyed writing it! And I hope you will all join me again for the sequel. A special thank you goes to my beta-reader, Hyatt Insomnia! Thanks for all your work and help on this fic.

Warnings: Mild violence and language.

Listening With The Heart

Chapter Twenty-three: A New Beginning

Joey slammed the hood down on the trunk of his mother's car. "Well, that's the last of it." He turned to face the Kaiba brothers, who were standing in the driveway of the spacious mansion that he would now no longer be sharing with them. He began to walk towards them. Mokuba came halfway out to meet him. "I'm gonna miss having you around, Joey."

"Eh, I'm gonna miss ya too, kid," he replied, affectionately ruffling the younger boy's hair. Mokuba threw his little arms around Joey's waist and hugged him tightly. "You take care of yourself, Joey."

The blonde laughed and hugged him back. "Yeah, you take care, too, kid. An' keep an eye out fer yer older brother there, too. Ya think ya c'n do that fer me?"

Mokuba laughed back happily. "I sure will! Come back and visit us sometime, ok?"

Joey grinned. "Watch what ya say; I just might take ya up on that." He winked and gave him the thumbs-up sign. He then looked up at Kaiba. He slowly approached him. "Um….well…..um….I guess….this is good-bye…"

"Don't be so dramatic. It's not as if you're leaving the country. You're not even leaving Domino City," the tall brunette replied in his usual sarcastic way.

"Yeah," Joey couldn't help but beam from ear to ear at the thought. He finally going to be living with his mother and sister again, and he wouldn't have to leave all of his beloved friends to do it. Life just didn't get any better than that!

"Well… anyway….," he continued awkwardly, "I…I jus' wanted ta thank ya….fer all ya done fer me, ya know?"

"You're welcome."

"Well…I guess…I...I should go now…"

"I guess so." Kaiba agreed. He hesitated a moment, then held out his hand to Joey. The young duelist was surprised at first, but then smiled and shook his former rival's hand warmly. Mokuba saw this gesture, and he, too, smiled. "Well, see ya!" The blonde waved and walked up to the car. He put his hand on the handle of the door and was about to get in, when he stopped and lingered for a moment.

"Aw, hell." The blonde suddenly whirled around, ran back up the driveway, and threw his arms around Kaiba. The CEO stiffened at first, in total shock. Then, slowly, he wrapped his long arms around Joey and returned the hug. "Thanks again….Seto," he whispered.

Joey quickly ran back to the car. Just before he hopped in, he once again turned to his former rival. "Hey, Kaiba! You should let more people in on yer secret, ya know?"

Kaiba's eyes widened. Surely he wasn't talking about that secret? He wouldn't dare…. especially not in front of Mokuba….

Joey flashed him another happy smile "Underneath all those trench coats ya wear, there's actually a real human being in there."

Kaiba smirked. "Get lost, Chihuahua." Inside, he was secretly relieved.

The young teen waved cheerfully. "Love ya, too, bro!" He then jumped in the car. The engine started and it began to pull away. Just as they were driving out, the window rolled down and Joey stuck his head out. The wind was whipping his golden blonde hair around his face, which ironically only served to make him look even more like a puppy. "AND DON'T CALL ME A CHIHUAHUA!"

From inside the car, a woman's voice could be heard. "JOSEPH WHEELER, YOU GET YOUR HEAD BACK IN THE CAR THIS INSTANT!"

"Aw, mom…," he groaned and reluctantly obeyed his mother. Kaiba shook his head. Even he couldn't help but smile as the dark blue car drove out of sight.

Mokuba sighed. "I'm really gonna miss having him around, Seto."

Me too, kid, thought the young CEO. But he wasn't about to say that out loud. "Hey, kiddo, what you say we spend the rest of the day together, just you and me?"

The younger Kaiba looked up at him, wide-eyed. "Really, Seto? You mean it? What about your work?"

He shrugged. "It'll still be there tomorrow. So, what you do say? We can do anything you want."

He gasped. "For real?"

"For real."

"AWESOME! I wanna play the new video game we bought last week first!" Mokuba beamed with happiness. His brother always seemed to get so wrapped up in his work….he couldn't believe he was actually offering to spend the whole day with him! He fairly bounced back into the house.

Kaiba chuckled at his younger brother's enthusiasm. The kid could have anything he wanted…but Kaiba realized what he wanted the most of all was often the very thing found the hardest to give him. Time with his big brother. I'm going to start making more time for you, little brother. You're the only reason why I work so hard in the first place. I won't forget that. He followed Mokuba into the mansion.

Unseen by the humans, a little angel stood outside the Kaiba mansion, her own smile growing wider by the minute. Yes, Seto Kaiba…I do believe you are finally starting to learn to listen with your heart.

THE END!

Yes! It is finished!

But wait! Stay tuned for the exciting sequel to LWTH….. To Kill, Steal, and Destroy!

This one is going to be a true Yugioh/TBAA crossover. It will have more Yugioh in it, though. And this one's not only going to have angels…it will have demons as well! (Insert evil laughter here.)

Here's the summary I'm going to use for it:

An evil presence has come to Domino City. One whose only purpose is to kill, steal, and destroy.

Stay tuned! Same bat time…same bat channel!

As always, please read and review! Thank you to all and to all a good night!