The Tale's Willow

Beautiful, Beloved 3

A/N: Be warned, this is gonna be a long chapter ;)

After dinner, with Tim insisting his brothers help clean up from dinner, the small group sat around the living room. Avi had gotten a fire going as his guests were cleaning the kitchen. He figured they'd want to head to bed early and enjoy the comforts of not sleeping in a truck. Austin was looking around and wondered why their host hadn't decorated for Christmas yet.

"Avi? Can I ask you something?" He finally blurted out.

"Sure, Austin. You guys can ask me anything." Avi smiled at the youngest Foust.

"Why haven't you decorated for Christmas yet?"

"Well, I had thought about it. (Avi shrugged) But then decided against it since it was just me here and I had no one to celebrate with." Avi explained.

"Can we decorate?" Austin's eyes widened at the thought.

"Austin!" Tim scolded, "We probably won't be here for Christmas. We need to..."

"Oh stop, Tim. I won't let you guys be freezing your tails off in a damned truck ON CHRISTMAS. You'll be staying right here with me." Avi firmly stated.

Chance had to laugh at their host. He was almost as stubborn as their brother!

"Look Avi, I really appreciate you feeding us and giving us a place to stay for the night but we'll be alright. We can find...somewhere...to go." Tim crossed his arms over his chest.

"You have already, Timothy. How long have you been on the streets without finding a permanent shelter?" Avi mimicked the taller man.

"I don't see how that's relevant. We'll be ok." Tim raised his eyebrow.

"So ok that you were resorting to pick-pocketing? (Avi once again mimicked Tim) Look, I know full well what it's like being homeless. If it weren't for a kind stranger, I don't know where I'd be right now. I'm just paying his kindness forward." Avi explained, "This house is more than big enough for all of you. Quite frankly, it's nice having people here with me. Especially at Christmas."

"Tim, he makes a good point. We haven't found a residence yet and no one wants to hire either of us." Adam interjected into the conversation, "Maybe it would good to stay here for a while. Get our bearings. It would be easier to find work having an actual address to put down on applications."

Tim sighed. He knew his brother was right. Looking around at the other three, he could see hopeful faces staring back at him. He sighed again before agreeing.

"I have internet so they can still do that part of their schooling. And I'll get all my Christmas down tomorrow, Austin, so we can decorate." Avi smiled at the young man.

"YA!" Came his reply making a few of the others shake their head.

"This has been an exhausting day, guys. That comfy looking bed upstairs is calling my name." Tim finally stated earning a few head nods.

"Yeah. We should all get to bed." Adam agreed, "Thank you, Avi, for everything."

"It's my pleasure fellas." Avi smiled as the group slowly began to stand from their seats.

As they were filtering upstairs, he was putting the fire out. He walked around the house shutting off lights and locking all the doors. Avi hadn't been downstairs long when he finally made it upstairs. Snores could already be heard in the hallway making him smile. 'Maybe now they can get some real rest!' Avi thought as he shut his bedroom door.