Everything had changed.
For Princess Luna, finally freed from her madness, the physical world possessed only a faint resemblance to her memories, so much that she wondered if those memories were just part of her long, terrible dream.
She remembered a castle, but not one quite so large and grand.
She remembered a community that had grown up around the castle, to support her and her sister, but not this bustling metropolis.
The only thing truly familiar to her was her sister, who greeted her as she rose each evening and saw that she would rest comfortably each morning.
And it was enough.
Celestia, and her trusted advisors, worked to integrate her into modern society, to teach her how the world had changed. But the fight to push back the nightmare’s influence on her was draining, and at first she could only concentrate on her learning for scarcely more than an hour. As time passed, she grew stronger. But at some point each day, she reached her limit, and would need to be alone, alone with her thoughts.
She would often find herself retreating to the kitchen. It was not because the kitchen was familiar to her. No, it was just as unfamiliar as the rest of the world. She recalled the kitchen as it used to be. The castle employed dozens, maybe hundreds of ponies, each with a special talent related to the creation of a single food. Now, the smaller number of chefs used strange devices, each powered by a push of magic, to create just as many culinary creations.
She did not visit the kitchen because it was familiar. She visited the kitchen because it had coffee, and in the time she was gone, ponies had found many new ways to prepare that divine elixir. It was a second familiar thing.
A third familiar thing from her past would soon resurface. It had taken her time to once again dare to dream, and as she took those first tentative steps into the dream realm, she felt the connection. There were other minds in the dreamscape, keeping their vigil. Three months after her return, they started returning, flying in by the light of her moon.
Some ponies called them batponies, other thestrals, but she knew them differently. They were her ponies. She learned how other ponies had come to fear them, tying them to Nightmare Moon, and so they retreated to isolated villages. Yet despite this treatment, the night tribe never ceased protecting the dreams of ponies, during the time when she was trapped in the nightmare of her own hubris.
One autumn day, sitting in the mess hall with her cup of espresso, her nose picked up a fragrance, a wonderful fragrance. Yet as dozens of night ponies entered the mess hall, she felt a lingering tension. She recognized them as hailing from many clans, but largely allied with one of two clans. While Celestia led the way on matters of court, the night ponies still looked to her as a spiritual leader. She knew she had to fill that role today.
“’Tis a glorious night, and we shall feast. So why are you down?” Luna asked.
The leader of one of the night pony clans, a stallion named Indigo Dusk, bowed before Luna. “Our long-lost brethren may share wing and blood, but they do not respect the sacred fruit!” he said.
The clan carried several ripe examples of the sacred fruit, each around the size of a hoofball, covered in spikes, and exuding that most heavenly aroma, at least to her and the night ponies. The few daywalkers in the mess looked ill, beating a hasty retreat.
The elder mare of the second clan, Night Bloom, bowed in turn. “Matron of night, bringer of dreams, banisher of nightmares, we do respect the sacred fruit, but during our sojourn from the settled Equestrian lands, we encountered a most wonderful fruit. We offer it as a gift.”
The mare extended her wings, revealing smaller ovoid fruits, with a smooth orange skin and a pleasant resinous scent. The stallion next to her used the blades at the edge of his wings to peel and cut the fruit, and offered a slice to Luna.
Luna tasted the fruit, her eyes opening wide. While it lacked the unique flavor profile of the sacred fruit, the durian, this new fruit was juicy and delicious.
“My little pony, what do you call this wondrous fruit?”
“Mango,” the elder mare replied.
“You consider that worthy of our princess? The daywalkers would probably eat it with you!”
“Please cease your fighting. The smallest grievances can fester and grow, becoming the worst nightmares.”
The two elder ponies bowed their heads in shame.
“Now, come with me into the kitchen. For as I have grown stronger returning to harmony with my sister, I see your two gifts, together, creating something greater.”
At this time of night, when even bakers were asleep, Luna and the night ponies had the kitchen to themselves. Luna reached out with her magic and pulled out two of the wonders she had discovered.
“Behold! A silky smooth concoction of sweetened milk and cream! And a device capable of combining foods with great speed!”
“We eat ice cream all the time,” Night Bloom said.
“And even the shop in Hollow Hills sells blenders,” Indigo Dusk said.
“Yes. Perhaps these are less novel than I thought,” Luna said. “But with these ingredients, we shall make something great!”
Mango, durian, and ice cream went into the blender, and with a few seconds’ churning, she had a thick, creamy beverage. She offered it first to the two clan leaders.
“I never imagined the sacred fruit tasting like this!” Indigo Dusk said.
“Such flavor!” Night Bloom agreed.
“Then come, let us share this bounty with your kin. Put aside the rough patches you have faced. With friendship, and with this drink, the future shall be smooth!”
And thus, Princess Luna’s first contribution to modern Equestria was the smoothie.