Chapter Summaries

Miaomiao gave Tony a bracelet woven with her hair, shed scales, and spiritual power to soothe his exhausted mind and soul. When Bruce’s question triggered Tony’s panic, Miaomiao sang to calm him, and the bracelet began to glow as its power reached him.

• Miaomiao wove a bracelet from her hair, shed scales, and water-formed strands, then gave it to Tony.
• Miaomiao explained that the bracelet carried Soul Soothing and Spirit Comfort to help Tony rest.
• Bruce asked whether the Battle of New York had caused Tony’s distress, and Tony panicked and retreated into his armor.
• Bruce recognized Tony’s reaction as similar to the post-traumatic stress he had experienced after his parents died.
• Miaomiao sang a soothing song, and the bracelet glowed as its gentle power began calming Tony.

Tony revealed to Bruce that he had seen a vast alien fleet through the wormhole during the Battle of New York, and the Hand Cord helped calm his panic. As Tony began describing the threat, Bruce listened downstairs while the Bat Cubs and Miaomiao eavesdropped upstairs.

• Tony resisted Bruce's concern, but the Hand Cord soothed him when fear of losing his loved ones overwhelmed him.
• Bruce invited Tony to stay and offered to return with him, and Tony agreed to remain for lunch.
• Jason, Tim, Dick, and Damian brought Miaomiao to the study and secretly tuned in to Bruce and Tony's conversation.
• Bruce urged Tony to share what he had experienced in the wormhole so they could face the threat together.
• Tony told Bruce that he had seen an enormous Chitauri fleet and that the force he witnessed was only a probe.

After surviving the Chitauri invasion, Tony Stark worried that Earth could not withstand future alien threats. Bruce reassured him that Superman could defend Earth, and Tony regained his confidence while vowing to keep improving his armor.

• Tony reflected that surviving the Chitauri invasion had made him realize how vulnerable Earth was to alien threats.
• Bruce told Tony that Superman could overpower an alien fleet and explained that Superman was the chairman of the Justice League.
• Tony questioned whether Superman was trustworthy, and Bruce said he trusted him and would restrain him if he ever lost control.
• Bruce explained that Superman constantly suppressed his strength on Earth to avoid accidentally destroying the planet.
• Tony accepted Bruce's reassurance but vowed to keep developing the Mark Armor so Earth could defend itself through its own strength.
• Bruce reminded Tony that his courage and inventions made him Iron Man, and Tony asked when they would have lunch.

Tony told Bruce and the others that he had fallen in love with Pepper and explained how facing death had made him regret pulling away from her. Bruce reflected on his past relationship and his belief that love could end amicably, before Tony turned to Miaomiao.

• Tony praised Alfred's cooking and asked about his youthful appearance, then admitted he wanted to improve his own looks for Pepper.
• Bruce learned that Pepper had been Stark Industries' CEO for two years, and Tim corrected his outdated information.
• Tony explained that he had realized his love for Pepper while carrying a nuke toward a wormhole and did not want to regret hiding his feelings again.
• Bruce described why he and his former partner had parted amicably, saying a relationship could help people grow even if it did not last.
• Tony disagreed that people in love should separate and said he would not let go of Pepper easily.
• Tony turned to Miaomiao, who was eating steak by herself, and called her little fish.

Tony learned that Miaomiao’s Hand Cord contained protective spiritual power and asked to give it to Pepper Potts. Miaomiao made a second bracelet for Pepper, predicted that she and Tony were fated to be together, and left Tony openly trying to recruit her away from Bruce.

• Tony cut Miaomiao’s steak after learning that Alfred had asked her to practice using cutlery on her own.
• Miaomiao explained that her Hand Cord could calm Tony, improve his sleep, and block one fatal attack.
• Tony asked whether he could give the Hand Cord to Pepper Potts, and Miaomiao agreed after seeing a photo of them.
• Miaomiao said Tony and Pepper were fated to become a couple and made a second bracelet with a spell that would let them sense each other’s injuries.
• Tony invited Miaomiao to leave Bruce and come to Stark Tower, prompting a disapproving stare from Bruce.

Tony Stark tried to persuade Miaomiao to leave Wayne Manor for Stark Tower, but she chose Bruce and the Wayne family as her home. Tony accepted her offer of friendship, while Bruce tenderly ruffled her hair.

• Tony praised Stark Tower and promised to spoil Miaomiao, while mocking Bruce's strictness and Wayne Manor.
• Dick joked about being tempted by Tony's offer, and Tim and Damian commented on Tony's attempt to win Miaomiao over.
• Tony confronted Bruce for keeping Miaomiao's existence from him for five months and mentioned that Oliver would also have questions for Bruce.
• Alfred asked Miaomiao to give her opinion, and she told Tony that Bruce was the father she had chosen and Wayne Manor was her home.
• Tony accepted Miaomiao's offer to remain friends, and Bruce gently ruffled her hair.

Tony invited Miaomiao to spend Christmas with him, but she chose to celebrate with the Wayne Family after learning that Christmas was a family holiday. When Miaomiao asked who Cassandra and the others were, the family silently blamed Bruce for not having told her.

• Tony invited Miaomiao to his home for Christmas, but Damian and the others explained that Christmas was for spending with family.
• Miaomiao declined Tony's invitation and said she would spend Christmas with the Wayne Family; Tony thanked her for his gift and flew away.
• Dick and Jason bickered while Damian and Tim scolded them, and Bruce quietly watched the family.
• Miaomiao decided she wanted to give her family gifts, and Tim said Christmas Eve was twenty days away.
• Miaomiao asked Bruce who Cassandra and the others were, prompting the family to exchange looks and blame Bruce.

Bruce and his sons explained the wider Wayne family to Miaomiao, introducing the siblings and allies she had not known about. Miaomiao learned who they were and looked forward to meeting them.

• Bruce told Miaomiao that Cass was his adopted daughter and her older sister, then explained that several other vigilantes were also considered family.
• Tim listed the family members who regularly visited Wayne Manor, and Damian emphasized that he was Bruce’s only biological child.
• Bruce and his sons introduced Cassandra Cain, Stephanie Brown, and Barbara Gordon, describing their skills and roles.
• Dick explained that Barbara worked as Oracle and had already spoken to Miaomiao over the comms, while Tim described Stephanie as brave and energetic.
• Jason called Stephanie and Cassandra difficult but dependable, and Bruce introduced Kate Kane, Duke Thomas, and Luke Fox.

Miaomiao learned more about how the Bat Family had welcomed its past members and felt happy to have gained a new family. She decided to go into Gotham City the next day to choose Christmas gifts for her family and friends.

• Bruce apologized to Miaomiao for failing to introduce the Bat Family properly, and Jason explained that they had learned to welcome newcomers through snooping and rough greetings.
• Dick recalled fighting Jason when Jason first came to Wayne Manor, then giving him the Robin name and costume.
• Tim remembered deducing Batman and Robin’s identities and enduring rough treatment from Jason and Damian, while Stephanie’s brief time as Robin went largely unrecognized.
• Tim reflected that Miaomiao had arrived after the Bat Family’s worst brawling days and was strong enough to protect herself.
• Miaomiao decided to prepare Christmas gifts for her Wayne Manor family, Pamela, Harley, Selina, and Little Croc, and planned to shop in Gotham City the next day.

Miaomiao went shopping alone to choose Christmas gifts for the people she cared about. She found a new sofa for Killer Croc and began preparing an oversized gift for Harley Quinn, while Bruce accepted Alfred’s push to return to work and consider working with his friends.

• Miaomiao left Wayne Manor by car to choose everyone’s Christmas gifts by herself.
• Bruce told Alfred that Miaomiao could protect herself and that keeping the family away would draw more attention to her.
• Alfred insisted Bruce go to Wayne Enterprises, and Bruce agreed that working with allies could be more effective than working alone.
• Miaomiao searched Gotham’s shops for gifts while dressed for the cold and trying not to stand out.
• Miaomiao chose Killer Croc a sturdy, spacious new sofa to replace the one he had salvaged.
• Miaomiao picked an enormous gift box for Harley Quinn and planned to use it for a different present.

While shopping for gifts in Gotham, Miaomiao admired a Christmas tree and met an eccentric man who mistook her for Alice and invited her to his tea party. She refused his gift, insisting that she did not know him and was not the person he sought.

• Miaomiao planned gifts for Harley, Pamela, and Selina while shopping at Gotham’s festival.
• Miaomiao noticed Christmas decorations and admired a Christmas tree in a shop window.
• An eccentric man approached Miaomiao and became excited by her appearance and voice.
• The man invited Miaomiao to his tea party and called her Alice, but she told him he had mistaken her for someone else.
• The man offered Miaomiao an ornate hat, and she declined to accept a gift from a stranger.

Jervis Tetch, the Mad Hatter, hypnotized Miaomiao and dressed her as Alice, believing she was the perfect companion for his tea party. The chapter recounted how his insecurity and obsession with an idealized Alice drove him to become a killer who abducted people to build his Wonderland.

• Jervis swung a pocket watch before Miaomiao and placed a lady's hat on her head.
• Miaomiao, hypnotized, took Jervis's hand and let him lead her into a dark alley.
• Jervis had once fallen in love with Alice, but his insecurity led him to take an experimental drug that worsened his appearance and temperament.
• After leaving the correction center, Jervis found Alice grown older and married, then killed her with an iron in a rage.
• Jervis became the Mad Hatter and used hypnosis and kidnapping to force victims into roles in his Wonderland.

The Mad Hatter abducted Little Fish and brought her to his Wonderland, where hypnotized Gotham residents were forced to act out his tea party. When he discovered her black hair and realized she was not the Alice he imagined, he began plotting to change her appearance without noticing that she was not under his control.

• The Mad Hatter hypnotized Little Fish with his Brainwave Control Device and led her into his hidden Wonderland.
• He showed Little Fish the abducted Gotham residents he had forced to play characters in his tea party.
• The Mad Hatter took Little Fish to a dressing room and removed her hat and cloak to dress her as Alice.
• The Mad Hatter saw Little Fish's black hair and panicked because she did not match his image of Alice.
• The Mad Hatter decided he could give her golden hair and fix her eyes, while Little Fish blinked with a clear, unentranced gaze.

Miaomiao discovered that the Mad Hatter was holding girls captive and preparing to mutilate one to make his imagined perfect Alice, so she revealed herself to stop him. As the Bat Family traced her disappearance to the Mad Hatter, Jason confronted Bruce over his past failure to save him, and Tim located the villain.

• The Mad Hatter inspected the controlled Alice girls and ordered the Rabbit Doctor to remove one girl's scalp and hair for his chosen Alice.
• Miaomiao resisted the Mad Hatter's control and intervened when the Rabbit Doctor approached the terrified girl with a scalpel.
• Miaomiao transformed her appearance to match the Mad Hatter's ideal Alice, distracting him from the captive girl.
• The Bat Family searched for Miaomiao, and Jason accused Bruce of always believing he would arrive in time despite failing to save Jason.
• Tim identified the Mad Hatter as the villain responsible for Miaomiao's disappearance.

Tim and Barbara traced Miaomiao’s disappearance to the Mad Hatter, but Tim doubted the villain could have hypnotized her. Jason and Damian left to search for her before the others could organize, leaving Bruce’s family racing to catch up.

• Tim told Barbara that Miaomiao had disappeared after her location signal was jammed downtown.
• Tim and Barbara recovered footage showing the Mad Hatter lure Miaomiao into an alley and identify him as Jervis Tetch.
• Tim argued that Miaomiao’s mental power made it unlikely the Mad Hatter had controlled her.
• Jason armed himself and rode off to find the Mad Hatter despite Bruce’s warning to stay calm.
• Dick urged Bruce to hurry, and Bruce realized Damian was missing.
• Alfred reported that Damian had left in his Robin suit on a Bat Glider, prompting Tim to call for a faster search.

Barbara located three likely hideouts where Mad Hatter might be holding Bruce’s adopted girl, and Stephanie set out to investigate while Cassandra agreed to return for Christmas. Waylon learned from Selina that Mad Hatter had taken the little girl.

• Barbara traced anomalous Brainwave Control Device signals and identified the Old Theater, a Toy Factory warehouse, and an Abandoned Clock Factory as likely hideouts.
• Barbara shared the locations with Stephanie, who headed out to help, and warned her to wear a gas mask and watch for watches or hats.
• Stephanie persuaded Cassandra to return for Christmas and meet their new little sister.
• Waylon ignored his communicator until Selina messaged him that Mad Hatter had taken the little girl.

Selina Kyle noticed the Bat Family was urgently searching for the Mad Hatter and learned that he had abducted Miaomiao. Furious that Bruce had let the danger happen, Selina rallied her allies and prepared to rescue the girl.

• Selina noticed Tim, Red Hood, and Little Robin searching Gotham for the Mad Hatter while Batman remained absent.
• Selina interrogated a thug and learned the Bat Family was hunting the Mad Hatter, whose hypnotic devices he used to abduct and torment girls.
• Selina called Bruce and realized that Miaomiao had been abducted; she berated him for failing to protect the child.
• Selina alerted Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn, then contacted Killer Croc and began preparing for battle.

Gotham’s heroes and villains converged on the Abandoned Clock Factory after learning that Mad Hatter had kidnapped girls for another tea party. The chapter ended with Batman facing Catwoman and her allies as they insisted on rescuing their little sister without Bat Family interference.

• Killer Croc Waylon Jones gathered Catwoman Selina, Poison Ivy Pamela, and Harley Quinn to search Gotham for Mad Hatter’s hideout.
• Waylon contacted Ratcatcher II Clea Cazo, who used her rats to locate the hideout beneath the Abandoned Clock Factory in the North End.
• Selina, Harley, and Pamela headed to the factory while Waylon traveled through Gotham’s underground rivers.
• Spoiler Stephanie, Red Hood Jason, Robin Damian, Batman Bruce, and Nightwing Dick converged on the factory, where they met the villains and Killer Croc.
• Batman told the gathered villains to go home, but Selina declared that they had come to rescue their little sister and demanded that he stay out of their way.

Batman and Gotham’s heroes and villains formed a tense alliance to rescue Harley Quinn’s kidnapped cupcake from the Mad Hatter. The team entered the clock factory’s maze, where Batman fell into the Mad Hatter’s underground Wonderland and warned the others that its poisonous mist was stronger than before.

• Nightwing persuaded the heroes and villains to cooperate, and Batman assigned them routes and warned them not to kill the Mad Hatter’s hypnotized victims.
• Red Robin and Oracle prepared remote support, while Killer Croc reported that Ratcatcher’s rats were already inside the maze.
• Red Hood gave the outlaws disposable communicators, and the team divided into groups before moving out.
• Batman found the rabbit hole in the abandoned clock factory, fell through the floor, and landed in the Mad Hatter’s underground maze.
• The Mad Hatter welcomed Batman to Wonderland as he encountered its dark, Alice in Wonderland-themed scenery and potent poisonous mist.

Batman and his allies fought through Mad Hatter’s hideout after communications were cut off, while Batman struggled against a hallucinatory Wonderland. The team disabled defenses and fought the guards, but Batman learned that Mad Hatter’s voice was a recording and heard it mention the Queen’s influence.

• Batman became trapped in Mad Hatter’s Wonderland, where hallucinogenic mist and illusions drained his mental strength.
• Batman took an antidote and used Batarangs to destroy projection equipment and scatter the mist, then recognized Mad Hatter’s voice as a recording.
• Red Hood and Robin fought through clockwork dolls and Mechanical Guards in the left passage.
• Catwoman disrupted illusion equipment while Harley Quinn attacked Rabbit Guards, and Poison Ivy used vines to block the mist nozzles.
• Killer Croc burst from the underground river, knocked out the mercenaries without killing them, and reminded himself that he had come to rescue the little one.