The Wordsmith's Forge

I understand that Lakia doesn't feel safe asking about keeping the cat, and also agree with her feeling that "this cat doesn't want to be kept," but I bet that if she did ask, Muffler would let her (pending having the cat checked for chips or other indicators of ownership). Indeed, I suspect that Muffler knows all about the cat and is looking the other way from the bits of food going missing.