[Well, luckily, he's not a cat! So he probably could! Maybe. Either way, when she clearly responds, he startled. Giving out an embarrass yelp and jumping away. Maybe he should be more used to this kind of thing, but.]

You-- can understand me? But-- but...

[He pauses, bringing his paw up to his chin to think. There is something awfully strange about this place. Is it an extension of the Metaverse somehow? But he's in this form...]

Huh? Oh! Um. It's nothing. I was just mumbling to myself. [His flicks his tail, mind spinning.] You're way more useful than these broken pieces of junk.