The final destination turned out to be a paved path that wound its way through the park near her apartment. There was a section of the pavement that carved through a particularly thick set of forest, one that was eerily dark and quiet at this late hour. Minny shivered and grasped the pen tighter, increasing her speed until she was sure she was far enough from the road. Then, she stood still.

And stayed in that position for several minutes.

Her heart was beating rapidly, fluttering around her ribcage like a trapped sparrow. The fear of being in the dark so late, combined with the uncertainty of what she was about to do and a little bit of excitement made her stomach roll. She breathed deep, filling her lungs with forest air and pushing down the weakness in her stomach. She held out the henshin pen with a shaky hand, staring at it.

It seemed to glow of its own volition in the gloom. Inviting her.

The words rose up from within her, and she said a familiar phrase.

“Ambrosia Power, Make Up!”

There was a flash of familiar warm light that enveloped Minny, making her smile. The warmth filled her with power, and strength she was unused to. The light blinded her for a moment, but she felt her clothing change. Heard the *pop* as the headband appeared. The *swish* as a skirt bloomed from the sailor themed bodysuit. After completing her transformation, she spun in a circle, looking over her fuku. It had been years since she’d powered up, but the clothing still fit her perfectly, right down to the yellow boots. Magic had a way of surprising you.

Chibi Ambrosia laughed, gazing at the gloves that appeared on her arms. Her green eyes shined with excitement. The apprehension she had felt before, the fear had melted away like wax to a flame. Now it was time to remember her capabilities.

She bent low in a runner's stance, fingers holding her steady on the ground. She counted down from three, and surged forward.

The dark trees flew by as she ran, her smile turning into a confident smirk as she sprinted forward. After a few yards of running, Ambrosia suddenly jumped, rising into the air with a whoop of joy. She rose higher than she’d ever jumped as a regular human, grabbing leaves from the branches above. She hit the ground and skidded to a stop, rocks flying behind her. There was no tired feeling; she felt like she hadn’t exercised at all. The super senshi danced in place for a minute, then did another two rounds of running and leaping, relearning her body.

When she was finally panting from the movement, she paused, and spied an unlucky tree that happened to be sticking out near the path. Her next target.

Ambrosia stood for a moment, gathering herself. Then she shouted “Honey Shoot!”

A ball of honey began to form, smaller than she remembered it being. When it reached the size of a soccer ball, it stopped growing, slowly rotating in place. The senshi took aim, and a few steps back. Then kicked the honey as hard as she could at the tree.

It didn’t stick to her boot, but definitely stuck to the tree as it struck with a wet *thump*. She cheered as the honey hardened into something like ice, semitransparent and easily chipped if someone really wanted to. With this final affirmation that she was still a senshi, Minny decided to power down before her signature caught a youma’s attention.

Back at her apartment, Minny collapsed onto her bed, tired but happy. She could still function as a senshi, and it didn’t seem as scary as before. Maybe on her next day off, she could give patrolling a try..

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