In the before, the closest that Celestia and Luna ever got to actually cooking was 'Hurry-Up Mix', so named because it was readily available, easily mixed, and suitable to get a pair of fillies to 'hurry up, before she has to feed us that mix again'.
After over a thousand years without ever managing to learn the art of cooking for themselves, Celestia and Luna decide it's finally time to grit their teeth and master the art of food preparation.
Read it here
.
Tropes found in this story include:
- A God I Am Not: Celestia is vocally quite proud at Anise finally overcoming her initial fear of teaching the sisters, pointing out that if they are to actually improve, they need someone who will tell them when they are wrong and how to fix things, not a sycophant who just dotingly assures them that they're doing right.
- Feet of Clay: Celestia and Luna's antics in the kitchen finally shatter Anise's initial overawed reverence for the sisters, leading to her shouting at them about what fools they are and emphasizing her words by kicking half-cooked dough in their faces.
- Hoist by His Own Petard: Now that she's actually forced to work with the antiquated ice cream churn which she's always demanded her chefs use, Luna comes to realize just what a hassle it truly is. (However, at least part of the problem is her height: she winds up turning the top crank by shuffling along in a circle with her knees partially bent, keeping the grip in her mouth — and as with the chefs, she's not allowed to use her field because she won't be able to feel resistance building up in the cask.)
- In the epilogue, Anise looks quite forward to the idea of making Luna repeat her "experiment" with the ice cream, which is slowly working towards the foundations of Baked Alaska.
- Lethal Chef: Zigzagged with the Royal Sisters. They are bad cooks and cause a lot of mess in the kitchen, but they know they're bad cooks, want to fix that, and do start improving.
- Signature Scent: Hurry-Up Mix has a decidedly... aromatic flavour to it, which, while decidedly unpalatable by any measure, is nonetheless familiar enough that it reminds Celestia and Luna of the days before.
- Stealth Pun: It took four years before anyone in the readership realized that by detonating ice cream made from her favorite flavor, Luna had created a cherry bomb.
- Took a Level in Badass: Anise Verum, the Head Chef, who goes from being terrified of getting thrown out of the kitchen — or into the dungeon — if she corrects the sisters, to verbally berating them as idiots when they wreck the kitchen.
