Quick footsteps sounded from the alley. "I hear them!" called Owlette. She pointed and swooped. Gekko and Catboy raced down the street. Owlette landed on a rooftop overlooking the scene.

Catboy blocked the alley. "Give it up, Night Ninja!" he said. "You've been caught!"

"Never!" said Night Ninja, clutching an ancient, yellowed scroll. He clambered up a fire escape. "Ha ha ha!" he cackled. "With the ninja techniques from this scroll, I'll become more powerful than you can ever imagine! Ninjalinos! Throwing stars!"

"Throwing stars?" asked Catboy. "What happened to sticky splat?"

The Ninjalinos withdrew throwing stars from their belts. Night Ninja said, "Been there, done that. I'm tired of losing to goody-goodies like you. If I'm going to start winning, I need real weapons. Ninjalinos, get them!"

The throwing stars whizzed through the air. "Super Gekko Shield!" shouted Gekko as he leapt in front of Catboy. The stars clanged as they hit Gekko's shields. "Put the scroll down, Night Ninja!" said Gekko.

"You'll have to catch me first!" As Night Ninja vaulted onto the roof, Owlette tackled him. The collision knocked them off the roof. As they tumbled through the air, Owlette snatched the scroll. She pushed Night Ninja away and glided to the alley entrance. Night Ninja crashed in a dumpster.

Night Ninja brushed a banana peel off of his head. "You pesky PJ Masks may have stopped me this time, but I'll be back!" He and the Ninjalinos disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

Owlette landed. Catboy asked, "Are you okay?

"Never better," said Owlette. "PJ Masks, all shout—wait. Gekko, what's that?" She pointed at his chest.

"Huh?" said Gekko. He let his shields down. Small rips criss-crossed his costume. "Where'd these come from?"

"It must have been the throwing stars," said Catboy. "When they shattered on your shields, the fragments must have ripped your costume."

Gekko poked at the torn fabric on his chest. He felt along his costume's arms, looking for more damage. As he stretched his left arm, the costume ripped down the length of his chest. "Uh oh. Looks like I'm going to need a new costume," he said.

"But this way you get to show off your super gecko muscles," teased Owlette. "All the supervillains will think twice after they get a look." Which, she thought, might even be true. The three superheroes weren't little kids anymore, and their bodies showed it. Greg's muscular chest could have intimidated even the most deranged supervillain.

"At least we're done for evening," said Catboy. "Let's take the scroll back to the museum."

The PJ Masks returned to the Cat-Car. As Gekko planted his foot on the Cat-Car's step bar and climbed into the back, there was another tearing sound. Gekko looked at his chest. "That's funny," he said. "I heard my costume tear, but the hole doesn't look any bigger."

Catboy said, "That's not the part that tore. It's, well, um, you see, the throwing stars ripped your costume in more than one place. Yeah, I'm just going to get into my seat and we're going to get going."

"What?" said Gekko.

Owlette buckled herself into her seat. "Don't worry about it. You already needed a new costume." She kept her head pointed away from Gekko.

"Why are you two acting funny?" asked Gekko. He sat down and reached for his seat belt. That was when he noticed the new tear. It was across the costume's crotch. Greg's thighs and jock strap were visible. Somehow his jock strap had come out of place, leaving him … exposed. "Oh," he said. "Sorry about that."

"Don't mention it," said Catboy. "Really, don't." He started driving.

Gekko tried to adjust his jock strap, but the solid cup he wore as a groin protector didn't offer a lot of options. It never quite seemed to fit when he was sitting down. He tried to cover his crotch with what was left of his costume, but the tears made that impossible. For a while he crossed his legs, but he wasn't covered up unless they were crossed tight. He was uncomfortable almost immediately, so he uncrossed them and spread out. He felt sweet relief for a moment. But he also felt air against his thighs, and he realized he looked like he was showing off. Finally he covered himself with both his hands. That seemed to be the least embarrassing option, even if it did look like he was fondling himself.

After most missions, the Cat-Car would have been filled with banter. They would have laughed off near misses and kidded each other about superhero moves that failed. The silence now was thick and uncomfortable. Gekko felt like he needed to say something. The silence was because of his costume. He should be the one to break the silence.

"So, uh, hmm," he said. This wasn't going well. He needed something to talk about. "What's the scroll about, anyway?"

"Dunno," said Owlette, who was still looking out the window. They rode in silence for a while longer. Eventually Owlette sighed and unrolled the scroll. "It says here that … that can't be right. No way."

"What is it?" asked Catboy. "A weapon? Magic?"

Owlette read, "'Enlarge your penis. Ancient ninja training technique makes your penis longer and thicker. Some ninja masters have reached eighteen inches long and twelve inches around. Thirty day guarantee.'"

The silence, already oppressive, became heavier.

It was Catboy who spoke first. "It's impossible. There aren't any muscles there."

Gekko said, "But if you trained your pelvic floor muscles, maybe it would stick out more. It might look like it was bigger."

"It's attached to your pelvic bone, so no."

Owlette said, "Don't tell me you two have actually thought about this before."

"Er," said Catboy. "Well, you see … Cameron brought it up once."

"Ah," said Owlette. Catboy's voice told her that he was holding something back. But it was probably something she didn't want to know. Suddenly, however, she had a question. "Wait a minute," she said. "Even if it worked, what would it be good for? Eighteen inches is longer than my forearm. And twelve inches around? That's like four inches across? Yeah, that's wider than my fist. No girl would let you near her. It would be like getting punched in a sensitive place, over and over."

There was awkward silence for a moment. Gekko said, "There are people on the Internet who say that—"

Catboy interrupted, "That being too big is awful. For just that reason. Right?"

"Um, yeah," said Gekko. He felt embarrassed. Why he had said that in front of Owlette? She must be thinking that he was gross. "Of course that's what they say. Yeah. Sounds terrible."

The car returned to silence. Owlette had a hard time imagining Connor and Greg discussing penis enlargement. They never discussed that sort of thing around her, and she was their closest friend. The three of them still played together, still studied together, still hung out together, and most of all still saved the city together. Their friendship hadn't changed even as everything else had.

And there was no denying that things had changed. They went to a different school now, one for bigger kids. People there acted differently. Except for her, Connor, and Greg, the boys and girls sat at separate tables during lunch. One time, as they were sitting down, she saw some of the girls staring at her from a distance. Marie whispered to Jenny. Jenny whispered back. They giggled. Marie whispered again, and Jenny's mouth made a big O. That was when they noticed Amaya looking at them. They looked down at their food and pretended nothing was going on.

Amaya knew that it was strange for her to remain friends with Connor and Greg. They would always be a superhero team, of course, but she would have stayed friends with them even if they weren't. They had spent hours and hours together and saved each others' lives countless times. They understood each other better than anyone else ever could. Nothing could break their bond.

All everyone else saw was the changes in their bodies, Amaya thought. Greg had always been strong, but now he was big, too. His muscles had filled out, making him look thick and gorgeously powerful. (Had she really just thought of her friend as gorgeous? Yes, she had.) Connor's body had developed, too. He looked lean and athletic, with every inch of his body firm and toned. Amaya knew what the saying "bounce a quarter off his butt" was about. And she got to admire that butt every day. (Wait, did she really admire her friend's butt that often? Yes, she did.)

Amaya's body was changing, too. She hadn't paid that much attention until one day when she realized her costume didn't quite fit anymore. That night, she spent an hour looking at herself in a long mirror. It was a good hour. She posed from different angles and compared herself to old photographs. Her hips had developed a relaxed, feminine curve. She wasn't a child anymore.

She'd never mentioned that night to Connor and Greg. Maybe it wasn't that strange that they had never discussed penis enlargement with her. But maybe she should've, maybe they should've. After all, they were best friends. Best friends shared everything, didn't they?

Owlette and Gekko were waiting in the car in front of the museum. Catboy had left to put the ancient penis enlargement scroll back. Gekko was still trying to cover himself with his hands. Owlette reasoned that it wouldn't be that bad if she peeked. She was just curious. That was normal. She was normal. But he was clearly embarrassed. She didn't want to embarrass him even more. He was her friend, after all. So she wouldn't look. Actually, maybe it was okay as long as he didn't know. If he didn't know she was looking then he couldn't be embarrassed. She would be discreet. She'd satisfy her curiosity and he'd never know.

"Hey! Owlette!" said Gekko. "Why are you staring at me?"

"Huh?" Owlette said.

"Why are you staring at the hole in my pants?"

"Oh! Is that what it looked like I was doing? It wasn't that at all. I swear, I wasn't trying to look. I didn't think that, well, I was only, you know, it's kinda like—" Owlette stopped herself. She was busted. There was nothing to do but apologize. She bowed her head. "I'm sorry."

Gekko said, "You know, you could have asked."

Owlette felt her cheeks flush. She could ask him, after all. If she wanted to. Did she want to? She did. But how much? Under other circumstances, enough to ask. But not right now when he didn't want anyone to see.

"You're my friend," Owlette said. "I'm not going to ask you that."

"You're my friend too. I don't want to show it off, but if you want to look, it's okay."

"Thanks, Gekko. But I don't need to."

Gekko reached out his hand. Owlette took it in hers. They held hands and looked up at the peaceful stars. For a while everything but the touch of their palms and fingers and hearts seemed to melt away. This, she thought, was what she really wanted. Being with her friends was the most satisfying thing there was.

Catboy returned a moment later. "What are you two doing?" he said. "Is something going on?"

"It's a good night," said Owlette. "Let's go home."