Explaining Numbuh 98/Quinn O’Connor
Back when I made Quinn in November of 2022, it was because I had the idea/plan to make a comic or fanfic about Numbuh 86’s past in the Decom squad. At first his only role was to be the Head of Decom before 86, but as I made him I ended up liking and fledging him out more. He ended up becoming a pretty major character in that story.
I’ve never really talked about Quinn’s lore because I always had the idea that I’d tell the story eventually…
Well, it’s now 2025, there’s no comic or fanfic, and I have enough self-awareness to know that the chances of me getting to write it are pretty low. So instead- here’s a really-very long post about Numbuh 98!! (and trust me, it's long-long)
(This is pretty headcanon heavy, which shouldn't be a surprise since this is about an OC. But still heads up about that)
Pre KND-to-Cadet era
Quinn is an only child, raised by his mother and father. There’s also his ‘uncle’ (who’s not actually his uncle it’s just his dad’s long time friend who freeloads in their living room). Quinn’s parents own a cafe, which is a general hotspot for kids, being one of the only places in town that allows them in that isn’t some sort of kid/family restaurant with weird mascots. Because of this, Quinn has always been pretty popular among his peers. Quinn was a naturally social kid who showed signs of maturity that was a bit above the maturity of his peers. He was also a very intelligent child, being top of most of his classes. His parents were proud of him, but they never treated their child like he was anything special. Because he was just, well, a child. Sure, they saw there could be potential for him, but they never gave him any extra affirmation outside of expectation.
Quinn, naturally, grew frustrated that his parents didn’t seem to see what others did. So he instead sought validation he should've gotten from his parents from everyone else. He tried extra hard in school and made sure all his teachers liked him. He was extra friendly to his classmates and always stood up for them. And one day, when he stood up to a bully, another kid suggested he should join the Kids Next Door.
Quinn was readily accepted into the KND Cadet program, having several other people’s accounts to back up his potential. And it wasn’t for nothing. Quinn excelled at the Cadet training. The only other cadet who was at his level was Chad Dickson. This was the beginning of their ‘friendship’, which was more like a quiet rivalry.
Soon, Quinn graduated the Cadet program and became an official KND operative; Numbuh 98.
Early Operative-Becoming a Decom Operative
Before joining the Decom squad, Numbuh 98 bounced around a lot. Officially, he was infantry, but that job wasn’t always needed so, like other infantry operatives, he’d take on other roles if needed. Every now and then, he’d hear about the Decommissioning Squad, and sometimes he’d attend a 13th birthday/decommissioning. He was never really friends with the kids who got decommissioned, per se, but he was a generally well-liked guy so kids kept inviting him.
The Decom squad had sort of a reputation in the KND. Not a lot of kids are too thrilled about hanging out with other kids who will eventually erase their and their friends' memories. This caused the Decom Operatives to become wildly disliked around the organisation, which in turn lead to the consensus that only kids no one likes join the Decom squad. Whether or not that's necessarily true doesn't matter here, what matters is that was the general consensus and reputation that the Decommissioning Squad had.
Numbuh 98 was aware of this reputation, but he himself never felt it was accurate. He was never close enough to another kid to get terribly upset when they were decommissioned, so he never really understood what the big deal was. They were just doing their jobs- was his opinion. In fact, he felt kind of bad for the Decom Squad for the reputation they had. So, he had the idea that if he, a well-liked kid, joined the Decom Squad, he could sway public opinion about it.
And that's what he did. A sector that doesn't get operatives lining at their door to join is bound to be pretty eager to accept one when they do come. So, Numbuh 98 became a Decommissioning Operative.
Becoming the Head of Decom
Numbuh 98's time before becoming the Head of Decom was remarkably linear. He was the best performing operative so he went up the ranks relatively fast. It was also notable for how he sought to change the perception of the Decommissioning Squad. He had always been charismatic and because of this, people started to chill out a bit about the Decom Squad.
His relationship with the Head of Decom of the time was noteworthy for being the first time Numbuh 98 had formed a bond with someone outside of just being friendly acquaintances. They saw how hard Numbuh 98 was trying and rewarded him, telling him that he was special, that we was above the rest. When Numbuh 98 had to decommission them, it was the first time he felt upset about doing it.
Head of Decom era
Numbuh 98 became the Head of Decom after decommissioning the last. During his time as the Head of Decom saw a large growth in success for the Squad. There was fewer escapees. Numbuh 98 credited this success to himself entirely, though he never said it out loud. He was also seeing the benefits of being some one who was high-ranking in the KND. Around this time is when he'd cross paths with Numbuh 274 again. The two had seen each other on and off again since their cadet days but now that they were both high-ranking operatives, they started to see each other more. Numbuh 274 was quickly becoming the darling of the KND, being Numbuh 100's second-in-command and gaining the reputation of being the best there is. Numbuh 98 felt a pang of jealousy every time he heard someone speak so highly of Numbuh 274, but still he kept his feelings hidden, in order to not break the perception others had of him.
Eventually, he'd meet Numbuh 86. He'd seen her before, when he'd go down to the Medic Centre, but he'd never had the chance to talk to her. Not that he really wanted to anyways, she was just a nurse. But he heard rumours of 'something' that caused Numbuh 86 to get kicked out of the Medical Branch. Numbuh 98 was never one to openly humour rumours, but this one caught his attention. The rumour painted quite the picture, that Numbuh 86 was unruly and rude, unfit for teamwork, etc. and it gave Numbuh 98 the bearings for his latest 'project'; to help a fellow kid who was clearly troubled. He approached Numbuh 86 and offered her a place in the Decommissioning Squad and after some consideration, she said yes.
Numbuh 98 say great potential in Numbuh 86 and went out of his way to train her personally. Others would say he was playing favourites, which wouldn't be a total lie. He would self-admit that he gave Numbuh 86 special treatment, but he'd say it was because he wanted to secure a worthy second-in-command once it was his time to go. That may be what he believed himself, but the full truth was that he quickly grew very fond of Numbuh 86, to the point of almost seeing her as 'little sister' of sorts. What Numbuh 98 wouldn't admit is that he might not be the best teacher out there. Not because of anything skill related, he was an excellent fighter and knew how to teach that to Numbuh 86. What his problem was is that he let his own issues cloud his judgement and would often enable Numbuh 86's worst traits, encouraging her to be more aggressive, to focus more on her work than her relationships.
Two major points during Numbuh 98's time as Head of Decom would be the 13th birthdays of Numbuh 100 and Numbuh 11. With Numbuh 100 he was the one to decommission him. Numbuh 100 had chosen to step down, to not continue working as a TND agent. When he decommissioned Numbuh 100, Numbuh 98 started to fully realise the passage of time and how he was getting older. He didn't notice at the time, but that planted a little seed in his mind that would soon cause his downfall. With Numbuh 11/Cree, she was one of the few who managed to escape him. This royally pissed of Numbuh 98, that who he saw as just a regular field operative could outsmart him. It made him resolve to try even harder, to prove himself.
Leading up to his 13th
The days leading up to Numbuh 98's 13th birthday could be considered the worst days of his career as a KND operative. Numbuh 98 knew of the TND, though he never had any information or contact with them outside of them just existing. For a while, Numbuh 98 had been growing bitter that he had never been offered a higher up position in global command and, with his 13th birthday approaching, he was starting to panic about not hearing anything about joining the TND.
The day before his 13th birthday, Numbuh 98 went to talk to the Supreme Leader Numbuh 274. He tried to remain calm and seem unbothered, simply asking Numbuh 274 if there was a chance he'd be accepted into the TND. Numbuh 274 told him that no, he hadn't been. As soon as those words left Numbuh 274's mouth, Numbuh 98's brain stopped. Because despite all his efforts, he still wasn't given the validation he wanted, he still wasn't good enough to be considered special. He lashed out, which caught Numbuh 274 incredibly off-guard. Numbuh 98 started becoming irrational, throwing out claims of jealousy and bitterness towards Numbuh 274, and was visibly getting agitated. Had no one else heard the commotion, Numbuh 274 could only wonder what Numbuh 98 would've done. Luckily, people did hear, and other operatives came in to see what was going on. Numbuh 98, seeing that people's attention was now on him, quickly forced himself to calm down and apologise, saying it was just a lapse in judgement for him. The last thing Numbuh 274 said before Numbuh 98 left was to not do anything stupid.
That night of his 13th birthday, after the Decom squad had rounded up all the turned-teenagers that day, Numbuh 98 insisted he be left alone to clean up, and that everyone else could leave. Alone in the decommissioning chambers, Numbuh 98 began to spiral. He had spent all this time, trying to prove himself, and it wasn't for nothing right? He had a reputation of being the most liked Head of Decom the KND ever had. So why wasn't he good enough? He came to the conclusion that no, he was good enough, he was special, and that's why they wouldn't promote him or let him in the TND, that they felt threatened by him. There, he decided, he did not deserve to get his memory erased. So, he began tampering with the decommissioning machine, in hopes of having it be faulty long enough so that it wouldn't erase his memories, at least not fully. He didn't care if it risked messing with any other decommissionings that happened that day, he was too caught up in his own thoughts.
Luckily, he left the door unlocked, and Numbuh 86 came back in. She had come back to see if he had left yet, and was shocked and appalled at what he was doing. Numbuh 98, having been caught, was snapped out of his spiralling thoughts. He tried to save face, and tried to convince Numbuh 86 what he was doing was a good idea. Numbuh 86, however, wasn't buying it. She held up her MUSKET and told Numbuh 98 that he was going to leave and she was going to fix the machine. Numbuh 98 agreed, but had one more request; that Numbuh 86 didn't tell anyone about this. If she did, he threatened to runaway from decommissioning entirely. So, Numbuh 86 agreed.
On his 13th birthday, Numbuh 98 tried hard to keep up his facade, though for once it wasn't working. No one, however, was any wise to the true reason he was upset and simply conclude it was because he turned 13. He had one last birthday party and official selected Numbuh 86 as the new Head of Decom. And then, he was decommissioned.
Post being Decommissioned/being a teenager
After being decommissioned, there was a noticeable in Quinn's personality. He was no longer as charming and sociable as he was as a child. Instead, he felt a inner bitterness and apathy to everyone around him.
Quinn soon came to learn about the Teen Ninjas, but for some reason he was never offered to join them. Surprise surprise, not a lot of teens are thrilled with the idea of working with the guy who tried to erase their memories, even if he doesn't remember himself. Quinn was fine with it, however. The idea of fighting against kids didn't appeal to him, he didn't see kids as worth the effort.
Eventually, Quinn would befriend three other guys and they'd start up their garage band. Quinn's band would often come into conflicts with Sector V due to them being general nuisances and stuff. Quinn would also get a girlfriend! Though, no one would be quick to claim he was a good boyfriend...
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And that's all, basically. I might go in depth with his specific relationships with other characters, especially ones that weren't mentioned here. But for now, that's all!!
