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[conning]

"It's Caffrey. Remember the value of plausible deniability. I'll get back to you."

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[abrightboy]

“You’re his first custodian; he’ll go by whatever you want,” Malcolm tells him with a soft smile.

[conning]

"I'll think about it," he says quietly. "I don't want to give him something that doesn't fit."

He rubs the kitten's head with the side of his thumb. "What d'you think, little guy? Mr Famous for now?"

[abrightboy]

"They do all have a personality," Malcolm agrees. "...Did you call me to ask my permission to keep him?"

[conning]

Neal blinks. “No, not really, I just… didn’t know what to do with him. Keeping him seemed like a bad idea.”

[abrightboy]

“What does he face if you don’t? It honestly seems like the best idea for him,” Malcolm points out.

[conning]

“I’ve never had a pet,” he says again, this time with a thoughtfulness mixed in to the discomfort. “You’ve at least had a bird before.”

Then, before Malcolm can change his own mind about taking the kitten, Neal adds, “Though I have babysat dogs.”

[abrightboy]

"Did you enjoy that?" Malcolm asks, reaching over to tickle the kitten under his chin.

[conning]

The kitten closes his eyes tight in an almost exaggerated expression of bliss, and Neal smiles at the image.

“I loved it. Never really occurred to me to try and adopt a dog of my own.”

[abrightboy]

“Would you prefer a dog?” Malcolm asks curiously.

[conning]

"I don't know," he says. "I like dogs. I like petsitting. But I don't have any basis for comparison."

He shrugs, rubbing the kitten between the ears with his thumb while Malcolm scratches the little animal's chin.

[abrightboy]

"Well, he likes you," Malcolm tells him. "So you might be stuck with him now."

[conning]

Neal is good enough at lying to himself that he doesn’t see it yet, but he’s keeping this cat. It’s a foregone conclusion.

“We’ll see. We’ll see how it goes.”

[abrightboy]

“I expect we will, yeah,” Malcolm agrees, giving Neal a knowing smile.