AN: Surprise, everyone~! Didn't expect this today? Well, it's a thing that I like to call a special one-shot story. I decided to do this to explore our favorite characters while filling in some potential character gaps. Some of them have huge contributions to the main narrative, so keep an eye out!

And just to warn you, while this one is short, future special chapters will be longer than usual. Let's get right into it!

Summary: "While preparing for Moe's stay at Hornet's, the cat is taken along to the supermarket. Naturally, Moe has the tendency to wander off as much as he likes to climb on trees."

Special Short #1 - Moe the Kitty

Before Hornet took Moe into his office, Wolf drove them to a mall to collect food and supplies during the Bad Guys' absence. At first, Wolf thought it would be safe to have Moe in the car. However, after a joke from Hornet that someone could come to their well-known car and steal Moe, Wolf caved in and allowed Moe to join along. Could give a boost in deciding what would be suitable for him.

On the firm condition that Moe wouldn't go anywhere else.

There were two shops they needed to visit, so Hornet went to one while Wolf made sure that Moe stuck close to him. A little cat could get lost in this mall. Especially when Wolf was supposed to grab items from a white, giant supermarket.

The canine felt a bit weird coming to this large place. It reminded him of how often he disguised himself to not scare those shopping. Sure, pre-redemption was when he felt comfortable showing his face to have all the space needed in the world. The way Snake would want it as well. However, before he even turned to the criminal life, Wolf didn't enjoy one bit of everyone pushing him around.

He couldn't get past a public place without being given worried looks by others. He felt like a monster when he wasn't acting like one. There would be some who went out of their way to harass him. It made him feel more like an animal than a human person. It didn't help that Wolf loves being social.

Nowadays, due to his heroics, no one feared him as an animal. They might be afraid due to his status as a criminal, but they weren't too harsh towards him. Walking into the supermarket and seeing the people passing by made Wolf feel close to home. As if he did belong after getting to show more of himself.

A smile came across his muzzle, even smirking when he felt Moe nuzzling between his feet. As Wolf ventured further into the supermarket, he himself remembered that he didn't even need to fear. It was like living a dream; something that was unlike receiving respect from other criminals.

His ear flicked up when he heard something whispering in his head. Wolf frowned, wondering why he was starting to hear this. It was faint earlier, but it was becoming a little louder. Somewhere around the words he should stop being a coward.

Eventually, it passed him. It shouldn't be the case. He hadn't heard voices since being released from prison.

There wasn't that much Wolf would need to pack for Moe, but he wasn't sure how long Moe would last without him. He only got a bag, but after a few minutes, it reached the top as he stuffed it with cat food. It was much cheaper than the pet store since they were on sale, but he might have ended up losing more money than he thought.

Though, that wouldn't be a worry due to how much stinking rich money he has. He could blow his money for anything. Especially on the tuna treats Moe would like.

Snake didn't agree with the idea of doting Moe. A lot. Especially the way Wolf treated their pet cat like a baby. And Moe became a clever cat due to what he learned from Diane and Wolf. Despite Moe not being spoiled, Wolf insisted they should give him a good life since there were no records on his background.

As already, Moe was becoming clever and he could even see the overloaded bag. The orange cat tapped on the canine's feet, catching his attention.

"What is it, Moe?" Wolf asked.

The cat responded by poking at one of the cat treat packages, pulling it out from the bag. Using his mouth and careful not to accidentally bite into it, Moe carefully placed it back on the shelf. Or at least he thought he did. He just simply threw it right where it was originally at.

"...so you don't want that flavor?" asked Wolf.

Moe shook his head and meowed. He placed a paw over the bag so that Wolf wouldn't mistake it as not wanting the flavor of the package he just threw out. Since Moe wasn't anthropomorphic, he couldn't say words. He decided to gesture to the bag before spreading his front two legs out, as if saying 'too big'.

Wolf blinked, trying to understand what he was saying. Then, it came to mind and Snake's words rang through his head.

"I don't know how long I'll be away for," he said. "I don't want to take chances."

Moe meowed, tapping on his foot as if saying that he would be fine.

"I'm not sure about buying not many for you," sighed Wolf, bending down. "Some food you cannot take and this is Hornet's first time taking care of you."

Moe hummed, tilting his head. He was trying to think of another way to convince Wolf…right until he saw Wolf holding a food package meant for pet dogs.

And Moe was, of course, not a dog.

"What?" said Wolf.

The orange cat just stared at the dog food before looking up and down at Wolf's body.

It came to the canine's mind what he meant. Shocked, he tried placing it back on the shelf.

"You did not see anything!" he said. "It's not what it looks like!"

At first, Moe wasn't sure why Wolf was so intrigued in buying pet food for himself to eat. To be fair, Wolf could be technically a dog, so he could gulp that can of raw meat down his throat. But it might not be good for him.

And Piranha did say that Wolf once drank out from a toilet, of all things.

The discovery of Wolf's interest in eating dog food was cut short when somebody called out his name. He looked to the side to find an Arctic wolf waving enthusiastically.

Wolf smirked. Oh, right. He remembered that nowadays, a lot more animals started opening up and revealing themselves in public. It was as if they decided not to let the prejudice get to them. While it didn't entirely change the humans' beliefs, not all of them in the States were biased towards predator animals. The Bad Guys left a mark on this world.

Nearly every wolf in the city tried to meet up with Mr. Wolf. He believed they saw him as some kind of symbol. Daunting at first, but it was a little better than being swooned over by female humans who might treat him like a pet. At least there were other animals out there starting to like him despite the negative stereotypes he embodied before.

This fanboy looked a bit too excited to meet him. He reminded Wolf of himself when younger if it wasn't for the purely white fur. Before Wolf could even think of coming up to him, the Arctic wolf was already right before him.

"You're Mr. Wolf!" said the Arctic wolf, jumping up and down. "I'm surprised you would come here."

At first, Mr. Wolf didn't know what to think. However, he let the charm run the show and showed some excellent confidence. Might as well make this boy faint. He liked to put on the attitude of a partying badboy.

"Ah, so you're really excited to meet me?" he said with a coy smile.

The arctic wolf giggled, his poofy fur practically making him beam more. "I-I'm a fan. It was awesome with your car tricks. You're like a stunt driver!"

"You can say that I learnt a few tricks when I was your age. From what I can find on the show and from the wild kids on the streets."

Moe meowed, sitting patiently as he watched the two wolves talk. The Arctic wolf was shaking in energy, but his tail wasn't wagging much. On the other hand, Wolf was somewhat liking the attention, his tail wagging in turn. With him deep in conversation with the fanboy, Moe decided to try to pull out the food packages from the bag.

He couldn't jump high, so it might not be possible for him to put them back on the right shelf. He could only pull them to the bottom shelf. At least the staff would put them back into their correct positions on the display.

The cat wished that he was as high as Mr. Wolf. Or at least as acrobatic as Mr. Piranha since the little fish could reach the tallest mountain.

As Moe looked to the side, he caught something sparkling. Some lady in light purple was walking by with a whole bag of groceries. A purse was hanging on her other arm, but something appeared to be spilling from it.

A necklace of shiny, silver bells. The ones you would see hanging from Christmas trees.

Even from far, Moe could pick up the jingling from the bells. It was rather…enchanting. Rattling as if it was alive. With a kind sound that wasn't a threat to him. A bit loud but playful.

The cat meowed again, hypnotized by the bell necklace from the lady. It didn't come to him that he was already walking to her. Mr. Wolf's voice was out of his hearing as he followed the lady heading to the check-out counters. He didn't notice that he was making his way out of the supermarket once the lady paid at the counter and collected her receipt.

He was only focusing on getting that bell necklace.

Just one quick play with it and then it would be over…

Tiffany Fluffit stopped when she felt something pulling on her purse. She looked behind, but there wasn't a robber. She walked again, but she could feel the pull again. In fact, she felt that someone was close to her. Well, sort of. However, she couldn't see anyone trying to snatch something out from her purse. Unless it was a ghost.

That would make a great true crime story, she randomly thought.

Aside from the usual mall traffic, all she heard was jingling.

Jingling…

Her bell necklace.

She looked down to find it poking out from the wide hole. She swore that she had her bag zipped up. To her surprise, an orange tabby cat was jumping up and down, trying to snatch it.

And that red collar looked familiar.

It came to Tiffany that this was the Bad Guys' team pet! Moe the kitten! She looked around, trying to find any of the members of the Bad Guys. None of them were in sight to her luck. She wondered if Moe wandered off on his own.

Tiffany chuckled, bending down. She hoped that Moe wouldn't wander away again.

"Oh, you," she said. "I never thought I get to see you up close, Moe! Say, where are the Bad Guys? I thought you were staying with them."

Having an idea, Tiffany grabbed a comb from her purse and put on her best announcer voice.

"We are now live where we have the adorable and cute pet of the Bad Guys!" she said, looking to the side. "With suggestions surrounding what they would name him, I'm glad to confirm that it is indeed Moe! The kitten was also part of the heartwarming moment of Mr. Wolf rescuing him from a tree."

Moe remained oblivious to the lady's play-pretend reporting, occupied on the bell necklace. With it now close to him due to the lowered purse, he grabbed it and rattled it around. The jingling noise brought him delight, rolling on his back to toss the bell necklace up and down.

"But what is he doing alone in a mall?" continued Tiffany, grinning. "Well, one thing for sure, based on how much we know about the Bad Guys and the events before Marmalade's phony gala; this cat tends to run around. And now he came here for my necklace; what a curious and adventurous cat!"

If she was actually talking to the readers, then she would be talking to someone.

However, since she was just pretending to have a camera in front of her, it looked more like she was talking to the air in reality. Or at least trying to talk to the people on the other side of the mall while blabbering away.

With a comb in her hand like a microphone.

Two mall patrons noticed Tiffany seemingly looking at them, talking non-stop.

"Um…is she talking to us?" said the first shopper.

"I don't know," said the other. "I think it's an insane person."

Tiffany was already in her own world. Whenever she spotted drama, she always arrived there to make a report on it. Not only for herself, but in hopes that the TV channel she was working with to be watched more by people who didn't even know the channel.

"So, you may all be wondering now," narrated Tiffany. "What am I going to do? Should I leave him right here until one of the Bad Guys arrives to collect him? Or should I stick with him with my petsitting abilities? Say, what do you think, buddy?"

Moe barely responded. He did look up at her, confused. However, he went back to playing around with the bell necklace.

Tiffany laughed, putting her comb away. "Oooh, OK, I forgot. You can't talk. I'm guessing that you came out here to play with this. It would have make a nice gift, but a bell necklace isn't ideal, so…"

The orange cat rolled around, nibbling on the bell necklace. Shrugging, Tiffany picked Moe up. As long as she kept him safe here, then the Bad Guys could be able to find him easily. She thought of walking around, but she figured they might end up being on different sides of the mall. Maybe Moe must have left behind pawprints on the floor.

"You're a cute little guy," said Tiffany, petting the cat on the head. "I wonder what tricks the Bad Guys taught you."

Moe continued nibbling on the bell necklace he had in his mouth. He didn't mind the lady picking him up. He sensed that he could trust her. Maybe it was due to gut feeling or seeing her before around the Bad Guys with a friendly presence.

The bell necklace dropped from his mouth and he was about to run out to grab them. However, as soon as it dropped from his sight, he looked upwards. Probably already being serious about his surroundings. He and Tiffany were currently facing a pet store. Surprisingly, there were even pets there to buy alongside the supplies normally needed for pets.

And right at the display window, there was a cage of guinea pigs, squeaking mindlessly and innocently.

Moe's eyes widened at the sight of the seeming innocence of the guinea pigs. Their sweetness could be a mask people would wear, unlike the Bad Guys…

He froze as memories of Marmalade ran through his mind. Images of being brought over to a laboratory, different medical pills he was forced to gulp down and the spitting of Marmalade as he yelled at him. The strong feelings of being sick from all the experiments to being afraid to the point of hiding in the tree. And the feeling of fear coming from the first and only time when the professor slapped him right in the…

The orange cat let out a hiss and bounced from Tiffany's arms. The news reporter didn't have enough time to react until she saw him scratching the display glass. Cracks appeared from the scratches, aimed towards the oblivious guinea pigs.

If Tiffany were in their spot, she would have seen how WILD Moe looked now!

Tiffany remained still for a few seconds, not sure what to do at first. But then, it came to mind that this wasn't a usual cat's behavior of wanting to play with birds.

The door opened and he dashed right inside. He immediately pounced onto the guinea pig cage, sending it dropping down.

On instinct, Tiffany bolted right into the pet store. She would have stood to the side to report on this, but this time? She wasn't sure how the rest of the Bad Guys would react if they found Moe viciously attacking other animals. And they might get the blame for letting their cat roam free like this!

She quickly grabbed the shrieking Moe without hesitation, seeing him flailing his claws around.

It would have been much easier if it weren't for the hushed crowd around her. Several children were shocked or frightened. The adults were shaking their heads in disappointment. A few staff were already coming to her.

"Is that your pet?" growled one of the workers.

"I think that's actually the Bad Guys' kitten!" said another.

"Why is he out here?" said a third. "Did they let him attack the guinea pigs?"

"What? No!" defended Tiffany quickly. "I saw him wandering outside. I didn't expect him to…"

She trailed off when she looked down at Moe. A flash of his eyes and she could see literal fire burning from them. It reminded her of the surreal image of Wolf nearly mauling Marmalade a year ago.

Without another word, she quickly gave the infuriated staff a couple of bucks before slinking out from the pet store. She would have run out, but she decided to go slow to not stress Moe further.

Once she found a bench far from the pet store, she placed Moe down on it. The orange cat nearly jumped off, but Tiffany held her hands up to ensure that he didn't run back again. Moe even noticed she wasn't happy to let him attack the guinea pigs again. Her face was surprisingly firm.

The two stared at each other for a few minutes before Tiffany broke the silence.

"OK," she said. "I don't know what happened, but what was that all about?"

Moe hissed, clearly not happy.

"Is it necessary to attack those guinea pigs?"

He nodded, growling.

"But why's that? Why would seeing them make you want to…?"

Tiffany found herself stopping asking questions. The way Moe had been looking at her seemed to die down from the angry energy he had held before. He was growing more quiet.

His ears barely moved, but his eyes stared at the wooden planks beneath him. His mouth was curled in a grumpy frown, but its trembling indicated that he was trying to hold back from crying. He didn't want to concentrate on Tiffany, too busy sulking to himself.

The news reporter had seen this kind of behavior with criminals when trying to ask for interviews. Mostly young delinquents. As if they were ashamed of…

A recall of looking up Marmalade's file caused her to wipe away her firmness. From the research of what was gathered from his experiments at Sunnyside Labs to the found camera footage of what was left of his mansion footage. They couldn't get out everything from Marmalade, but one thing made clear was that he wasn't exactly kind to domestic animals.

Tiffany sighed softly, petting Moe as gently as possible. "Oh. So it reminded you of Professor Marmalade, right?"

The orange cat nodded, still not looking up.

"I'm sorry about that," Tiffany continued. "You must have had a hard time with Marmalade before Wolf came into your life. I should have known about this."

Moe slowly lifted his head, surprised to hear Tiffany's words. Never once had anybody talked about his past with Marmalade. Wolf spent a lot of time trying to ensure that he could have the best life, but it never came to mind what might be bugging Moe. The fact that Moe couldn't communicate didn't help, leaving him trying to push behind unwanted memories.

"Is this…something you want to talk to me about?" asked Tiffany sympathetically.

Moe nodded, but he could only meow. He didn't know how to explain it, let alone to a human. He never reflected before. It was too scary for him to remember what Marmalade did to him. It might be impossible to see the scars hidden underneath his fur, but they were still there.

Eventually, he shook his head, not wanting to explain.

"Right then, right…" Tiffany was initially embarrassed, but it overcame when realizing that Moe would have tried speaking this out loud any way possible. "I'm guessing that you're not ready yet?"

Moe nodded again, curling up into a ball.

Tiffany sighed again, mentally scolding herself for not realizing what the cat went through with Marmalade. She often echoed the widespread views about certain things since that would be what people want to hear. She didn't exactly have an opinion about Marmalade, going along with everything he said. She never made connections since she wasn't a detective.

Maybe Mira had a point about needing to explore the world more, but time could be wasted too easily.

That broke when the Bad Guys proved themselves to be better than Marmalade. It terrified Tiffany since she didn't know who to trust after relying on public words. She did want to praise the Bad Guys for all their accomplishments. Sometimes, the more 'good' public figures swayed her better judgement. She never questioned Marmalade about his doings.

If she had found out earlier about Moe, she could have had the opportunity to decide on revealing this fact about Marmalade. She muttered to herself in annoyance, aware that most of her actions were likely due to fear.

"I'm not saying that your feelings are not justified," continued Tiffany. "But…'hitting' the guinea pigs…might be like how Marmalade would have done the same to you."

Moe nodded with a deadpan look.

"But it wouldn't really be right. If I had my crew with me, I would have immediately labelled you as a wild animal. That would have made people think you're worse as Marmalade. It might look like it's true, don't you think?"

It came out blunt than Tiffany intended. However, there were some things needed to be precise since Moe didn't seem to understand.

Sure, Moe might have acted similarly like Marmalade before, but it should be fair if he did, right? That was what he thought.

"I don't think it's worth it," whispered Tiffany. "It might…make you like him. He would continue to be angry, willing to hurt people more."

The orange cat blinked in surprise. The way this lady dropped her voice was kinda creepy. Him? Wanting to hurt people more? But aren't all guinea pigs bad?

"OK, I might not understand," said Tiffany, sitting beside Moe on the bench. "But you've been given a nice home with Mr. Wolf. That's what makes you happy and safe, right?"

Moe tilted his head, trying to catch on what she meant.

"And that would be better than trying to fuel your anger since it would be asking for more. It's eating you up. Maybe you're…not ready to try to explain your past with Marmalade, but I believe that the Bad Guys will hear you out on this." Tiffany recalled back to some of the recent headlines broadcasted by other journalists. She had to admit Mira did a good job as well. Even if the Bad Guys could be rowdy, they seemed happier together. "Believe it or not, I actually know so since they're a team. They'll come to you when you need them."

It was simple words anybody could shrug off, but to Moe, it was phenomenal. He was never given something so reassuring from anyone ever since Wolf connected with him on that fateful night. For a while, he thought that trying to get back at people might work out. However, the way Tiffany bluntly put it kind of did make him realize that he was nearly doing a similar treatment Marmalade did.

If Tiffany didn't stop him, then this might be more than the first and last time he ever hurt another animal.

When thinking back to Wolf, he remembered how kind the canine was. Even that night, he let Moe hide in his refuge, wanting him to be safe of his own free will. To hear that Wolf and the others would hear Moe out was something that didn't come to mind. It made Moe see that he would feel much better around people who care for him. To hear him.

Nearly tearing up, Moe crawled towards Tiffany and nuzzled her on the leg. Feeling this, the news reporter kindly petted him between the ears, feeling the cat's purring. She smiled a little, feeling glad that she could comfort someone: a non-anthropomorphic animal somehow.

She still enjoyed the limelight of reporting, but she had to see how different it would be from outside the camera.

The two sat up when they heard someone calling for Moe. Tiffany took this cue to hold Moe up gently and find his owner. Just in time when Wolf nearly bumped into Tiffany.

He was a few inches taller than her, dwarfing Tiffany. Up this close, Tiffany was a little nervous. Not really because he was a wolf. She knew that he didn't look too savage despite previous public fears. The puppy look saved it.

If anything, she was nervous about him because he looked so…handsome.

"Uh…hi, Mr. Wolf!" said Tiffany, bashful. "I think you were looking for him."

She didn't need to give Moe over. The cat crawled right into Wolf's arms. The canine let out a relieved sigh, glad that he was safe.

"I hope he didn't run into trouble," said Wolf.

Tiffany chuckled sheepishly. "About that…he tried attacking some guinea pigs in a pet store."

Wolf's eyes widened. "Wait, you're joking, aren't you?"

"I would be, but I don't have my crew here. It wasn't…appropriate to report it. I won't be the one making a scene of it and getting people thinking you're a bad influence on your cat."

The canine huffed, looking down at Moe. "Going a little strong right there, huh? I wonder if it was due to Piranha."

The orange cat meowed, burying his face into Wolf's chest.

"But why was he trying to attack?" asked Wolf. "He never harms a fly."

Tiffany dropped her smile. "I believe the guinea pigs reminded him of Marmalade. From what I know, he wasn't…good with animals, especially in experiments."

Wolf glanced at Moe and back at Tiffany in shock. If what she found was true, that meant Marmalade did terrible things to Moe back then. Not from just leaving him on a tree. The thought of it made Wolf sick.

"Good thing that rat is still in jail," he growled. "He'll have one thing coming to him if he thinks he can put a paw on Moe."

Tiffany nodded. "Agreed. Honestly, I'm not too shocked that Marmalade engaged in animal abuse."

"You're not?"

"Yeah. I can be smart whenever I want to."

Wolf's phone rang from his pocket. Possibly from Hornet. Wolf chuckled a little, making sure not to drop Moe. He already needed to carry one heavy bag (with at least three packages of dog kibble over his shoulder) and he didn't want Moe to walk on his own.

"I gotta go now," said Wolf. "Thank you, Tiffany, for taking care of him. Maybe you're not too bad after all."

"Aww," said Tiffany bashfully. "Thank you."

As Wolf turned around, Moe crawled onto his other shoulder, having one last longing look at Tiffany. He raised his paw and waved back, saying 'goodbye'.

Surprised yet pleased, Tiffany did the same.

Moe just looked back, hopeful.

AN: Let's be honest, there's a good portion of thoughts explored through Wolf and Tiffany. With this story gonna be a huge character analysis, I somehow turned one solo special chapter focused on one character into an analysis of three different canon characters!

Doing a one-shot special on Moe the kitten was no easy feat. But fortunately, since Moe has a different personality and understanding, it gives a lot of space even to see those around him. It's like exploring through the mind of a younger child, especially with the implications of what Marmalade did to him. Furthermore, I'm hoping that I get to continue with this character further in being on Hornet's and Mira's side.

Reason for exploring a little on Wolf is something you have to wait and see. I actually plan for him to have his own one-shot special focusing on him. But diving into a little to his thoughts would provide a contrast to future chapters.

Tiffany is an interesting case. While she has no significant role in this story, I decided to give her a moment. The fun with writing about named characters is that you would become interested in them and give them some time to shine. She'll only appear as a cameo later on, but I want to explore her a little more to show her more humane side.

You know the drill. Favorite or follow if you like, review and stay tuned for the next act. Until then, keep on rocking!