Why Wolf has to do with Stede
In the following I will argue and prove why Wolf the rabbit as a character and as a name has to do with Stede. I will skip the formalities of introducing the text and summarizing everything, I will assume you have seen the entirety of ofmd s1+2.
First we have to look at Ed and how he deals with his inner conflicts and desires. He very much prefers to talk about them indirectly or deflect from the problem at hand. s1 ep9 when he retreats to his pillow fort and talks with Lucius about his own poetry he refused to admit the poem is about himself. In actuality the poem reflects his mental state he had at that time. Here he is deflecting from himself while expressing his inner problems. When in s2 Ed tells Stede he will become a fisherman and claims his inner turmoil is about fishing he talks indirectly about his problem. Can he be more than just a pirate? Is he good at anything else other than being a bloodthirsty pirate? These are the questions that I believe he is asking himself. Knowing this makes Wolf make a lot more sense.
When Ed is talking to the rabbit Wolf in s2 ep4 he isn't actually talking to an animal, subconsciously or not he is actually talking to Stede. In prior events like mermaid Stede saving Ed from purgatory and then being banished from the ship. Not to mention the inner conflict inside him at waking up to his ex, Stede, after a near death experience would create. Because of all these events Stede is on Eds mind, and to deal with this he indirectly addresses some of them by projecting Stede onto Wolf.
The name Wolf does relate to Stede. Ed doesn't know the new Stede yet, he hadn't had the time to get to know him again. In his mind Stede still is the same person who he was in s1: more soft and not that fierce, yet he is a pirate captain even though he isn't a typical pirate. Similarly Wolf isn't the typical wolf, it's more soft and not as fierce. Here Ed shows us he sees Wolf, in actuality Stede, as an equal. This gets highlited when he calls himself a lone wolf too, like how he sees both Stede and himself as pirates. Additionally he physically gets down on the ground to be on the same eye level as Wolf, showing us physically how he thinks of them as being equal.
Through Wolf we also know Ed still trusts Stede. Ed opens up about his tattoos to Wolf. This is later confirmed when we're shown how Ed trusts Stede enough to introduce him back to the revenge with that silly cat bell in ep5.
By calling Wolf and himself lone wolves Ed reveals what he desires. In a classic sense lone wolves are alone, which was Eds original plan in s1 ep4: take on Stedes identity and retire, presumably alone. This plan changes over time as we see in s1 ep8 when he wants to go to China with Stede, the two lone wolves retiring together. This wish doesn't change in s2, Ed still wants to be with Stede as complicated as his feelings are. Wolf even reflects this wish with the lone wolf metaphor. Ultimately Ed and Stede do end up becoming the two lone wolves Ed wanted and they retire from piracy together. Trough this metaphor the name Wolf directly relates to Stede.
In conclusion the name Wolf does relate to Stede. Ed deals with his issues indirectly as shown throughout the show Ed projects Stede onto Wolf. Because of this Wolf is Stede in a sense, as a result the name Wolf is inherently connected to Stede. This is further enhanced by the metaphor of Ed and Stede retiring together as lone wolves.
