Chapter Summaries

Bruce and the Bat Cubs prepared Gotham for a quiet Christmas Eve, while Miaomiao used her Illusion Song to lull Arkham Asylum into sleep. After Damian checked that she was well, Miaomiao took him on a bubble-protected swim through a beautiful underwater world, leaving him pleased to be the first person besides Bruce she had invited along.

• Bruce praised the children for putting family first, while Alfred teased him about his expression.
• As Christmas Eve arrived, Miaomiao sang from the Underground Cavern and peacefully put everyone in Arkham Asylum to sleep.
• Tim, Damian, Dick, and Bruce confirmed the plan had worked, and Damian gave Miaomiao an energy bar as she recovered.
• Miaomiao made a protective bubble for Damian and led him on a deep-sea swim through clear water filled with glowing fish and coral.
• Damian learned he was the first person besides Bruce whom Miaomiao had taken into the ocean for fun and switched on his communicator.

Miaomiao and Damian returned to Wayne Manor, where she met more of Bruce’s family and friends. The family gathered for a warm Christmas Eve dinner, leaving Miaomiao feeling at home among them.

• Damian teased the others over comms about being the first to take Miaomiao swimming, while they called him childish and jealous.
• Miaomiao and Damian changed into dry clothes and joined the family gathered at Wayne Manor for Christmas Eve.
• Bruce introduced Miaomiao to Kate Kane, and Stephanie introduced her to Barbara Gordon and Cassandra Cain.
• Duke Thomas and Lucas Fox greeted Miaomiao, and the family settled around the dinner table.
• Alfred served gingerbread men and roasted apples as everyone shared a festive meal, and Miaomiao enjoyed the warmth of the gathering.

The family exchanged Christmas gifts, and Miaomiao received thoughtful presents from everyone. The gathering ended with Kate placing a practical, elegant hair ornament in Miaomiao’s hair.

• The family relaxed together as they exchanged gifts, while Bruce watched them and Cassandra gave Miaomiao a handmade dolphin brooch.
• Dick gave Miaomiao a glowing seashell bracelet, prompting everyone to gather around and offer their presents.
• Stephanie gave Miaomiao a box of plush sea creatures, Barbara gave her upgraded communicators, Jason gave her kitten-ear earmuffs, and Tim gave her a customized tablet.
• Damian gave Miaomiao a carefully carved merfolk figurine resembling her, and she thanked him warmly.
• Duke and Luke gave Miaomiao underwater toys, and Kate fitted a waterproof fish-tail hair ornament with a distress signal into her hair.

Miaomiao received loving Christmas gifts from her family at Wayne Manor, including Bruce’s gemstone necklace, and cried tears that transformed into Blue-Violet Pearls. As the family comforted her, snow began falling over Gotham, giving her a rare white Christmas.

• Alfred gave Miaomiao a warm sea-blue knitted shawl, and she opened Bruce’s Purple-Black Diamond necklace, which he said matched her eyes.
• Bruce told Miaomiao that Wayne Manor was her home, and she told the family she loved them even more than the gifts.
• Miaomiao cried from happiness, turning her tears into Blue-Violet Pearls as Bruce, Dick, Jason, Tim, and Damian tried to comfort her and catch them.
• Someone pointed out that snow was falling, and Miaomiao watched her first real snowfall through the windows.
• Kate remarked that Gotham might not have a white Christmas even once in ten years.

Miaomiao celebrated her first snowy Christmas surrounded by her Wayne family and gifts from friends across Gotham. After opening Penguin’s expensive music box and exclusive Iceberg Lounge membership card, she learned it reflected the olive branch Wayne Enterprises had offered him.

• Miaomiao watched Gotham’s rare Christmas snowfall with her family, and Bruce welcomed it as her first White Christmas.
• On Christmas morning, Miaomiao learned that friends and acquaintances from across Gotham had sent her gifts.
• Miaomiao opened gifts from Clark’s family, Diana, Aquaman, Barry, Hal, Commissioner Gordon, Killer Croc, Poison Ivy, Catwoman, Harley Quinn, and Two-Face.
• Miaomiao opened Penguin’s music box and exclusive Iceberg Lounge membership card, which Dick and Tim examined.
• Tim explained that he had negotiated a profitable deal with Penguin on behalf of Wayne Enterprises and Drake Enterprises, and Jason said the gift represented Wayne Enterprises’ olive branch.

Oswald Cobblepot learned that a little girl from the Bat Family had softened Gotham’s villains and made them beloved by the public, stirring his longing for the acceptance he had never earned. When Tim Drake offered a business agreement, Oswald welcomed him and reconsidered what strength and respect could mean.

• Oswald reflected on his upbringing, criminal career, and lifelong desire for status and respect.
• He investigated the public’s changing view of Killer Croc, Catwoman, Poison Ivy, and Harley Quinn, and learned that a little girl from the Bat Family had helped them change.
• A subordinate told Oswald that Tim Drake had arrived to discuss a mutually beneficial deal.
• Oswald received Tim courteously and heard Wayne Enterprises’ proposal for a long-term agreement on commercial-district security and Christmas supplies.
• Seeing how the other villains had gained public affection, Oswald recognized that acceptance and respect were what he had always wanted.

Oswald asked Tim to let the Cobblepot Family become true partners with the Wayne and Drake Families, hoping for a chance to earn genuine respect. Tim refused to gamble with Miaomiao but agreed not to bar Oswald from approaching her, and Oswald asked to send her a Christmas gift.

• Oswald reached out to Tim and proposed a lasting partnership between the Cobblepot, Wayne, and Drake Families.
• Oswald explained that seeing Waylon’s situation had made him want to gamble on a different future for himself and his family.
• Tim said he believed Oswald was sincere but would not risk Miaomiao’s safety or force her to interact with him.
• Oswald pleaded for one chance to prove himself and earn respect openly, like Waylon had.
• Tim said Miaomiao could decide for herself and warned that she could sense good and evil in people’s hearts.
• Oswald thanked Tim and asked to send Miaomiao a Christmas gift, and she began to understand that he envied the friendships Little Croc and the others had made.

Miaomiao decided to meet Oswald Cobblepot before choosing whether to be his friend, and Bruce arranged for Dick to accompany her to the Iceberg Lounge. They arrived at Cobblepot’s office, where he was waiting for them.

• Miaomiao asked Bruce whether she should be friends with Penguin, and Bruce told her she could decide for herself.
• Miaomiao chose to meet Oswald Cobblepot first, and Dick volunteered to go with her.
• Dick drove Miaomiao to the Iceberg Lounge, where the staff recognized them and escorted them to a private elevator.
• Miaomiao and Dick reached Oswald Cobblepot’s office, and his voice invited them inside.

Oswald Chesterfield Cobblepot met Miaomiao and nearly lost his temper when she called him “Little Penguin.” Miaomiao offered to call him “Mr. Os” instead, and her explanation about names left Oswald unexpectedly moved.

• Oswald Chesterfield Cobblepot formally introduced himself to Dick and Miaomiao.
• Miaomiao admitted she could not remember Oswald’s full name and suggested calling him “Little Penguin.”
• Oswald stiffened at the nickname, while Dick moved in front of Miaomiao to protect her.
• Miaomiao apologized and asked if she could call him “Mr. Os” instead.
• Miaomiao explained that a surname represented a family while a given name represented a person, and Oswald accepted that “Mr. Os” did not sound so bad.

Miaomiao’s open kindness prompted Oswald to set aside his schemes and promise the Cobblepot Family and Iceberg Lounge would be her friends. Their conversation was interrupted when Poison Ivy called to say Harley had gone wild and was determined to find Joker.

• Miaomiao and Oswald talked freely, and Oswald reflected on how he had treated Killer Croc.
• Oswald bowed to Miaomiao and promised that the Cobblepot Family and Iceberg Lounge would always be her friends.
• Dick watched Oswald’s unusual show of sincerity toward Miaomiao.
• Miaomiao answered a call from Poison Ivy, who urgently told her that Harley was trying to find Joker.
• Harley shouted that nobody could stop her and demanded that Ivy release her from the vines.

Harley Quinn became convinced that Joker needed her and tried to break free of Poison Ivy to rescue him from detention. Dick, Miaomiao, and Bruce moved to intervene, while Bruce suspected Joker or someone else had reactivated Harley’s psychological conditioning.

• Harley shouted that she was going to find Joker, and the phone connection cut off before Pamela could stop her.
• Miaomiao realized Harley was heading to Joker, and Dick drove her toward Poison Ivy’s Emerald Kingdom while alerting Bruce.
• Oswald called to have Joker’s latest activity investigated, and Bruce sealed the routes to the detention area.
• Miaomiao and Dick arrived as Pamela tried to restrain Harley with vines and sleep-inducing pollen, but Harley fought them off.
• Pamela told Harley that Joker did not love her, and Harley insisted he did before raising her Baseball Bat and trying to reach him.

Miaomiao stopped Harley from riding off to rescue Joker and put her to sleep, while Pamela kept watch over her. Pamela recounted that Harley had seemed fine that morning, leaving the cause of her sudden urge to rescue Joker unexplained.

• Pamela tried to stop Harley from leaving, but Harley fought through the vines and rushed to her motorcycle.
• Miaomiao arrived in time to pin down Harley’s handlebars, then caught her Baseball Bat and restrained her.
• Miaomiao sang Harley to sleep, and Pamela carried her to a vine hammock and thanked Miaomiao for stopping her.
• Miaomiao asked why Harley had suddenly decided to rescue Joker, and Pamela said everything had seemed normal until noon.
• Pamela recalled their Christmas presents and ordinary morning, but could identify nothing unusual that might have affected Harley.

Dick, Miaomiao, and Poison Ivy investigated the gifts suspected of causing Harley's condition, but their checks found nothing unusual. Batman arrived and suggested the gifts might matter because of what they represented, leaving the mystery unresolved.

• Poison Ivy allowed Dick to inspect the gifts after Miaomiao asked her to let him help.
• Dick recalled how Poison Ivy had once defeated him when he was Robin, and Miaomiao promised to protect him.
• Dick scanned the gifts while Miaomiao sensed them, but neither found any abnormality or residual power.
• Batman arrived, heard Dick's account, and examined the gifts.
• Batman suggested that the problem might not lie in the gifts themselves, but in what they represented.

Batman concluded that the Joker’s psychological imprint had driven Harley Quinn to continue his Christmas chaos, even while he remained locked in Arkham. Pamela refused to let Batman take Harley, and as their argument escalated toward a fight, Nightwing urged Miaomiao to cry loudly.

• Batman explained that the Joker’s conditioning could make Harley act out his plans without any new interference from him.
• Pamela realized Harley may have gone to find the Joker because she believed Christmas should follow his idea of a chaotic performance, and Miaomiao mourned that Harley did not truly want to hurt anyone.
• Batman warned that Harley’s identity as the Joker’s girl kept the Joker active in her thoughts, prompting Pamela to suspect he intended to return Harley to Arkham.
• Pamela’s vines surrounded Batman and Nightwing, while Nightwing tried to calm her and Batman insisted that protecting Harley from consequences would let the Joker’s control worsen.
• Pamela lashed a vine toward Batman, and Nightwing scooped up Miaomiao and urged her to cry loudly.

Miaomiao stopped Batman and Pamela from fighting by pleading through tears, and Frank helped comfort her. Afterward, Nightwing explained that Joker’s psychological influence still endangered Harley, while Batman said that influence remained in her mind even if Joker never left Arkham.

• Miaomiao began crying and begged Batman and Pamela not to fight, making Batman pause and Pamela withdraw her vines.
• Nightwing blamed their conflict for frightening Miaomiao, and Batman promised that they would not fight.
• Frank tried to comfort Miaomiao with a handkerchief, and she thanked him after he wiped her lashes.
• Nightwing told Pamela that Joker’s psychological control over Harley remained dangerous even while they were apart.
• Pamela criticized Batman and Nightwing for repeatedly letting Arkham’s inmates escape, and Batman said Joker’s influence persisted in Harley’s thoughts.

Pamela hesitated to let Batman help Harley break free of Joker’s psychological hold, fearing she would be taken from her or put at risk. Selina vouched for Batman, who promised Harley could stay with Pamela while Miaomiao learned how her Illusion Song might help; Pamela was left ready to help protect Harley.

• Batman told Pamela that separating Harley from Joker would not erase Joker’s psychological hold and urged her to address it completely.
• Selina arrived, learned what had happened, and offered to vouch for Batman and stay with Harley.
• Batman assured Pamela that Harley would remain in the apartment and that their friendship could help sever her link to Joker.
• Batman asked Miaomiao to learn more about her Illusion Song ability before they decided on a treatment plan.
• Miaomiao asked Pamela to help Harley together and promised to watch over her, while Pamela looked at Harley’s tearful, restless face.

Pamela agreed to help Batman and the others free Harley from the Joker’s Mind Control, while Miaomiao returned to the Batcave for ability tests. When the tests showed unexpectedly weak results, Bruce comforted Miaomiao and explained that anxiety had disrupted her Illusion Song, reminding her how powerful she was.

• Batman promised Pamela they would only try to free Harley from the Joker’s Mind Control, and Pamela agreed to help while keeping watch over Harley.
• Batman took Miaomiao back to the Batcave with Nightwing to test her abilities and plan how to help Harley.
• Tim calibrated the equipment, and Miaomiao sang while the Bat Family measured her psychic sound-based abilities.
• The test results showed Miaomiao’s abilities were far weaker than expected, and Miaomiao feared she had failed.
• Bruce reassured Miaomiao that his anxiety had made her nervous and disrupted her Illusion Song, then reminded her of the powerful illusions and sleep-inducing songs she had created.

After Alfred helped Miaomiao relax, she realized that Illusion Song’s strength depended on her state of mind and sang with newfound confidence. Her test results exceeded Bruce’s expectations, and he prepared to test whether she could create a lifelike illusion in someone’s mind.

• Bruce, Dick, and Tim reassured the anxious Miaomiao before Alfred brought out tea and blueberry cookies.
• While relaxing with the refreshments, Miaomiao understood that Illusion Song reflected her state of mind and faltered when she felt afraid.
• Miaomiao thanked Alfred and asked Bruce to restart the test.
• Miaomiao sang an Illusion Song that left everyone in the Batcave calm and produced more energy, with greater stability, than her earlier mass hypnosis at Arkham.
• Bruce praised Miaomiao’s results and asked her to construct a lifelike illusion in his mind.

Miaomiao tried to create an illusion in Bruce’s mind but stopped when she realized his mental defenses were too strong to overcome safely. Just as Bruce prepared to rest, Jason reported that the Joker had escaped, and the Bat-family discovered threats at three locations across Gotham.

• Bruce insisted that Miaomiao create an illusion for him so she could practice controlling her power, while Dick and Tim warned about the risks.
• Miaomiao sang an illusion song as Tim monitored the equipment, and Bruce fell asleep during the attempt.
• Bruce woke feeling well, but Miaomiao apologized because she had failed to get through his mental barriers without hurting him.
• Alfred urged Bruce to shower and rest, but Jason called to report that the Joker had escaped.
• Tim found red alerts at the Gotham Television Station, Miller Harbor, and the Ace Chemical Plant, indicating that the Joker meant to split their forces.

Batman and Nightwing tracked Joker to the abandoned amusement park, where he livestreamed a threat to Gotham and forced Batman into a deadly hostage game. Joker left Batman racing against a ten-minute deadline while warning that hidden bombs could destroy several city locations.

• Damian reported that Joker had kidnapped Gotham Television Station employees and was heading to his old hideout at the amusement park.
• Bruce ordered Damian not to act alone, then drove to the amusement park with Nightwing while they watched Joker's livestream.
• Joker struck the employee who had set up the broadcast and announced that he had planted hidden explosives at several locations around Gotham.
• Joker demanded that Batman reach the amusement park within ten minutes, rescue the hostages alone, and solve his riddles, threatening to kill one hostage every minute.