When the cat wakes up, she realizes that she's been separated from Souta since the beginning of the novel. She asks the sparrow if she knows where the human is, and the sparrow tells her that he's gone by the river. The cat wonders if the alcohol has gotten to her, and she wonders if it's getting to her more and more. She tells the sparrow to go ahead and tell Souta where they're going, because she hasn't been able to sneak out of her room. She says she'll make her hide in a shamisen one day, because people like Souta "don't tend to live long lives" . She also says that she doesn't have any feelings for Souta, and that she didn't think about it at all. She's glad that she finally has a chance to tell her story, because now she feels "flown freely." She asks if the contract between the cat and Souta is complete, and he says that it is. He says that he needs her to stay with him for a while, but that now that he says they must never let humans find out about them, he'll have to ask her to leave.