The train ride back to Cornwood was long and tedious, the hours passing at a snail’s pace. The pristine marble floors and towering buildings of Canterlot were replaced by trees and rural farmland. Little Chart had taken a nap on the way home, keeping his bag of apple goodies hidden while he snoozed, firmly wedged between him and the train wall.

Little Chart awoke when the train lurched to a stop, looking out the window to see the moon and stars. As he stepped out onto the wooden platform he looked at the dismal fields, sighing at the miserable state of the coming harvest. If nothing changed it’d be the fourth year in a row they had an abysmal yield.

For now though, he had a more immediate problem. As he started walking back home he struggled to figure out how to tell them he’d failed the test. The treats Bright Mac had provided him served to keep his stomach quiet for the time being, but he knew the gnawing emptiness would be back soon enough.

The rickety gate squealed as it was pushed open. Twigs and dead leaves snapped underhoof as he made his way to their one-story house. He sighed, trotting through the front door and closing it behind him, setting his bag on the kitchen table.

"I'm home." His voice was quiet, barely audible across the room. "Guess they're asleep." As if satisfied with his meek attempt to announce his presence, he pressed deeper into his home, an unwelcome quiver entering his legs.

He started to walk down the hall, but he heard muffled noises coming from his parents’ bedroom. He carefully stepped closer, his curiosity rising. The noise led him just outside their room and he carefully pushed the door open just enough to peek inside, his eyes nearly bugging out of his skull at what he saw.

He saw his mother lying on the bed, exhausted and disheveled. Beside her was his father, sitting on the floor, rocking a small wooden cradle. His shock compounded as he realized what was inside, and what he had missed while he was away in Canterlot.

“You can come in, son.” The surprise made him freeze up. Hewn Oak hadn’t even turned to face him, but his curiosity overpowered his shock as he stepped into the room and walked approached, a surprised gasp escaping him at. Within the cradle were two foals, a colt and a filly, pressed up against each other and fast asleep.

"W-What happened?" Little Chart wasn't sure why he was whispering. A moment later he chided himself for such a stupid question with such an obvious answer.

"Your mother went into labor a few days early," he explained. "If we'd known sooner, we would've…" He took a breath. "Come here."

His approach was slower, mindful of every step as he crept towards the sleeping bundles. His ears folded down, keeping quiet for the sake of the foals. When he finally came to stand beside the cradle his expression softened.

“I thought Mom was only going to have one foal,” he whispered. his gaze drifting from one sleeping face to another. They seemed so quiet and peaceful.

“We were only expecting one,” he corrected. He put his free hoof on Little Chart’s shoulder. “But it seems our family has been blessed with two little miracles.”

Little Chart suppressed a groan, trying to think of any way to stop his mind from exploring the unpleasant realities these little ponies brought with them. “No horns… They’re like you and mom.”

“One is,” he corrected, carefully picking up the filly, exercising as much caution as his hooves could possibly show. He gently pulled her blanket back, and Little Chart’s eyes widened seeing a pair of wings on her.

“But how? We don’t even have any pegasi in our family!” His whisper was strained.

“Evidently we do somewhere in our family tree.” He remarked, gently wrapping the blanket back around her and tucking her beside her twin. “Just like our family tree has a unicorn somewhere for you to get your horn.”

Little Chart couldn't help but stare at the colt as his father stroked his sister’s cheek. As he did so, the pony gave a quiet squeak and opened his eyes, fixing them on Little Chart.

The colt looked down into his new brother's eyes, thinking of strain on the family, a strain that he hadn't helped. He could have saved them all from supporting his worthless plot, but he just had to go and blow it. "I'm sorry," he mumbled.

"Whatever for?" Hewn asked as he picked him up, seeming confused.

Little Chart grimaced. "My test. It was easy, I should have passed."

It took a few seconds to process what his son was telling him, sighing as he came to realize what he was saying. “It’s okay, you did the best you could. Nothing more we could’ve asked of you.”

While the reassurance was supposed to make Little Chart feel better, all it did was make the hollow feeling of despair he was carrying more pronounced. A part of him wished his dad hadn’t been so understanding, that he’d be angry so he could protest the injustice he’d been dealt today. Especially now that there were two more mouths to feed and he’d lost the only chance they’d had to alleviate the burden he placed on the family. He shut his eyes tight, trying to hold back the tears that were forming.

“Have you decided on names yet?” He asked, trying to distract himself.

“Not yet, your poor mother passed out soon as she finished giving birth. Wouldn’t be right to name them without her awake for it.” He answered while rocking the cradle.

Little Chart tilted his head, something coming to mind as he took a closer look at the new foal. He looked up at his dad and he was smiling knowingly, seeming to already know what he was thinking. "I- Um," He sat back, rubbing his hooves together. "I'll be a good big brother." He managed, his eyes misty. "Even if I didn't get into that school I promise I’ll be the best big sibling anypony could hope for.”

"Little Chart," his father started. "Look at me." Little Chart hesitated but did as he was told, looking into his eyes. "You made it all the way to the exam, and you did the best you could. That's something to be proud of."

“No it isn’t…!” He felt his tears starting to well up, the dam finally starting to give way. “It's nothing! All I had to do was levitate a stupid bowl and I couldn’t even do that right! This was my big chance, and I blew it! I let all of you down!” It took everything he had not to break down crying right there and wake up the room’s other occupants.

What happened next was almost too quick for Little Chart to see but in one moment he saw his father tucking his new brother into the cradle before scooping him up. The surprise stunned him long enough to be carried to his own room, his dad sitting on the bed and holding him in his lap. “Let it all out, now. I’m right here.” He gave his son a light squeeze and that was all it took.

Tears streaked down his cheeks as he sobbed into his father’s chest, his fur quickly growing damp as Little Chart cried his heart out. “It’s not fair! I didn’t know what they wanted! I tried my best, but it wasn’t good enough! We already didn’t have enough, and now it’s going to be even harder! I was supposed to make it better but now it’s going to be even worse!”

Little Chart bawled, his shoulders shaking and every breath coming with a raspy sob. He could feel his dad rocking him back and forth in his firm embrace, holding him close as he broke down. He had no idea how long he was there, how long he cried in his embrace, but he was patient enough to not ask questions or make any demands.

Hewn Oak was content to silently hold Little Chart for as long as he needed, offering him gentle rocks, squeezes, and pats on the back, trying to calm him down. Eventually he had settled down enough that he was sure he’d hear him.

“We’ll make it work, we always do. It may not be ideal, but we’ll be ok.” He knew it was something of a generic comfort. There were definitely challenges a new mouth in the family posed, let alone two, but those weren’t important right now. Right now what mattered was showing love and support for his eldest child.

Eventually Little Chart was reduced to just whimpering and sniffling. He leaned into the larger stallion, utterly spent from his emotional outburst. "Why do we have to be poor? Why are we so poor? What did we do to deserve this?"

"We aren't poor." Hewn Oak put his hoof on Little Chart's head, tilting his gaze up. "Having less doesn't make us less.”

"That doesn't help." He gave a half-hearted squirm as if to escape the embrace.

"It will. Give it time." His father held him closer.

“It’s not even going to get better.” Little Chart’s voice was bereft of hope. “The crops are in awful shape. Again. I heard when you told mom Cornwood doesn’t have the bits to hire pegasi to water them.”

“You let the big ponies worry about that. For now, you need to get some sleep. You’ve had a long and busy day. In the morning you can get more acquainted with your new brother and sister.” He pulled back the covers and laid Little Chart down, pulling them snugly over him and giving him an affectionate nuzzle. “Goodnight. Remember, we all love you. Get some sleep, and I hope you feel better in the morning.”

Little Chart sighed as he tried to relax, looking at his father. "I'll try." He kept his gaze on the stallion, trying to push the feeling of despair out of his mind. "Goodnight, Dad." He closed his eyes and curled up beneath his covers.

On some level, he decided, he was glad he was past admitting how badly he had messed it all up. At least they didn't hate him for it. He felt a strong hoof on him, rubbing his back until he eventually drifted off to a mercifully peaceful sleep.

Author's Note

Hey everyone! I hope you all had a very merry Christmas!🎄

The day began badly for Little Chart, but it ended with some new additions to the family. I promise Little Chart won't be such a downer in the next chapter. Please let me know what you think down below and I'll see you all again in the next chapter!