Kat gets older. She can say a few words, now ("eat" and "Mama" and "bright" and "up" and "no!") and she likes playing in mud and chasing little Elves and other little orcs around. She tries to grab people's hair and has not been cured of this habit yet. With enough little orcs around and Kat no longer unambiguously "the baby" Beka has admitted to calling her Kat; her own name is still a secret. There are no other orfs with whom she might be confused.

She hits on Macalaurë. She no longer seems to expect it might ever work; she's a little wistful when she does it.