Winner: Quinn
Quinn knew he really had very little to complain about.
His Miraculous wasn't sitting in some dingy bin somewhere, the holder who had come across him wasn't incompetent or using him for any really evil purposes, and he didn't suffer a lack of purpose.
But still, when left to his own inner devices Quinn couldn't help but complain.
What about?
Gabriel that-gosh-darn-stick-up-his-butt Agreste.
From the get go there seemed very little about Gabriel Agreste that he could really complain about.
Oh sure the man wasn't social and was even a little cold but he wasn't bad . In fact, Quinn was convinced he could actually be a very warm person on the few occasions he let his guard down. Which almost never happened, but still.
And he was intelligent too. The man could analyze people like no one's business.
Quinn had told him nothing about the other miraculous outside of his own and what little Gabriel had managed to pick up from the book. And yet, through observing Ladybug and Chat Noir he managed to make some shockingly accurate conclusions on their abilities and team dynamic.
The man also had the nerves of a rock. The peacock kwami had been quite surprised that the man hadn't freaked out more when he emerged from the miraculous. There was a slight widening of the eyes, but nothing more.
People had activated his miraculous with prior knowledge far surpassing Gabriel's in the past and they had all freaked out from some combination of surprise, awe, or simply weak mental fortitude.
He was also, clearly, capable of a great deal of loyalty and love. His dedication to finding his missing wife proved that. Never once had Quinn doubted that finding out what happened to her was his holder's true motive for everything he was doing now.
Really, the man was a very impressive specimen.
But the few drawbacks Gabriel Agreste had were glaring and, in Quinn's own summation, absolutely irritating.
For starters, the man treated the kwami's presence like some negative symptom that came with the powers instead of a benefit.
He only bothered to feed him, call him by name, and confide in him his thoughts for the simple reasons that A) if he wanted the peacock miraculous powers Quinn had to stay energized, B) Quinn would refuse to listen to him unless he called him by name, and C) there was simply no one else Gabriel could talk to about his mission.
Beyond that, he couldn't really say that the two were anything remotely like friends.
Not that that bothered Quinn particularly. The relationship between kwami and their holders was often professional. Intimate relationships weren't uncommon or discouraged, but to get the job done all the two needed to do was work together. It was unreasonable to expect every user of the miraculous to be a one-hundred percent match to their kwami.
Another problem he had with his current user was the clear fact that Gabriel was… he didn't want to say selfish but the word fit. It wasn't a greedy sort of selfish or a hateful sort of selfish, but more of a narrow-minded sort of selfish.
The idea of using the peacock miraculous to help Ladybug and Chat Noir defeat Hawkmoth had never once crossed his mind. His focus was entirely on the self-appointed goal of finding his wife and that was all that mattered.
The things that mattered to him, the really important things, were part of a very very short list. And the great good was not a part of that.
Quinn was quite convinced that all of Paris could be destroyed and Gabriel Agreste would never blink an eye so long as he got his wife back and his son was safe.
Speaking of his kid …
The peacock wanted to slam his head against a wall every time he thought about the relationship between Gabriel and his son.
He himself had never actually SEEN the kid in person, and Gabriel avoided talking about him to Quinn whenever humanly possible. But what little he could gleam from having to hide in Gabe's office all day was not reassuring.
Gabriel loved and took pride in his son. There no doubt in that. The pictures he kept of the boy plastered in his office was proof. He tried to pass it off as a simple work venture, but Quinn could see through that like polished glass.
But as far as his capabilities as a parent went, he was rather sub par.
Quinn had yet to even see Adrien and that, to him, was indicative of a problem.
Gabriel seemed to find nothing wrong with the fact that he never even saw his son most days. He knew where he was and that was enough.
But you didn't get to hang around for over five thousand years and NOT figure out how to recognize unhealthy human interactions.
From what he could pick up, Adrien was a well-behaved, obedient, and intelligent boy. And in the weeks, he had been in the mansion he had never caused any disturbances or problems.
And that was a problem.
Even after thousands of years people never truly changed. Old women were old women, young dreamy-eyed girls were always young dreamy-eyed girls, and even the kindest most well behaved teenage boys clashed with their parents as they grew up and gained independence.
He wouldn't have a problem with it so much if he could catch the two arguing a little more. A slight word to one another in the mornings. Anything to indicate that the two knew something about one another that wasn't obvious to the casual observer.
But the most infuriating thing about the whole situation was how Gabriel himself couldn't seem to see anything wrong with it.
Adrien was his son. He ensured that he was looked after, healthy, educated, had no want of anything and was safe . Those seemed to be the things that Gabriel prioritized as a parent. And while Quinn couldn't complain about the fact that the boy was looked after, he could complain about the fact that Gabriel was blind to the importance of personal interaction.
He had tried to hint as much to his user but was shot down almost instantly.
"I know what is in the best interest of my son. Not you ." he had spat it out angrily and then made a point to leave Quinn alone in the room.
Ah, yes that was the other thing about Gabriel that infuriated Quinn.
The man was so set in his ways that any suggestion that he might be wrong about something was quickly shoved to the side and disregarded.
All of these things were aspects of Gabriel that infuriated the Kwami from a day to day basis.
But on this particular occasion, there was one thing that somehow managed to surpass everything else. If only temporarily.
"That's it?! All that dramatic build up and for what?" Quinn demanded feeling cheated. "The fact that Chat Noir MIGHT be 15?! I thought you were going to say something significant!"
Gabriel stared at him with the most confused stupefied look on his face, "What do you mean this isn't significant?" he rose from his seat. "Are you trying to tell me that you do not find the fact that one of the two most powerful miraculous is in the hand of a… of a mere boy?!"
"Of course not! I mean it's not like this hasn't happened before."
Gabriel was suddenly looming over him, a very serious look on his face. "Explain. Now."
"You could try saying please."
"Quinn!" Gabe slammed his fist on the desk, his nerves reaching a fever pitch.
Rolling his eyes and sighing the kwami floated up and began to explain, "The miraculous can get into people's hands one of three ways. They can be found, they can be stolen, or they can be given. You got mine the first way, Hawkmoth presumably got his the second, and if I had to hazard a guess Ladybug and Chat Noir were probably chosen to wield theirs."
"Chosen?! Why would anyone choose children?!"
Quinn was thankful that he hadn't bothered to ask who did the choosing.
Shrugging the kwami replied, "There's no real restriction on who can be given the miraculous so long as they meet whatever the criteria for each miraculous may be. Age, gender, social status? It all goes out the window when choosing a wielder. So long as they are determined to have the physical, mental, emotional, and moral fortitude needed to properly use the powers the wielder can be anyone."
He then added, "Of course users of certain miraculous often share many of the same traits with previous holders. So people who exhibit many of the same traits as previous successful users are often chosen."
Gabriel collapsed back into his chair. He slouched down resting his elbows on his knees and clasping his hands together, deep in thought.
Quinn let him sit in silence for awhile. More questions would be coming, he knew that. He had deliberately kept back certain things about the miraculous from Gabriel. But if Gabriel asked the right questions he would have to answer.
Finally, the middle-aged man narrowed his eyes in thought and asked, "What kinds of traits are considered preferably when choosing a Ladybug or Chat Noir?"
He thought that question would be coming.
As always Gabriel was focused on his current goal. And right now he wanted to get closer to Ladybug and Chat Noir. Knowing what kind of traits were preferred in their holders may help him get closer to the two.
Quinn sat quietly thinking for a moment before he began again. "Well, I don't do the choosing so I can't say for certain. But in my experience, people who are chosen to own a miraculous are nearly always brave, self-sacrificing individuals with a desire to do good for people." He shrugged at the obviousness of that statement. "Now I dunno how long it's been since the Ladybug and Chat Noir miraculous were last active so I can't say for sure if this reasoning still holds up in today's world…"
Gabriel raised an eyebrow.
"Oh don't look at me like that. You humans are always changing your ways. Your social customs, and what you think is right or wrong can change on a dime. That's really the difficult thing with deciding who deserves to wield a miraculous. One generation of people may hold one set of traits admirable while the next can be completely different. It's a headache keeping track, I tell ya. Now where was I?"
"The traits considered when deciding the wielders of the Ladybug and Cat miraculous." Gabriel reminded.
"Oh right. Well, Ladybugs are usually level-headed and clever. The power of creation demands a person with a quick wit and a unique imagination. Otherwise, the powers would go to waste. They're also usually natural leaders, but not always."
It was clear that his user was paying very close attention as he quickly asked, "And Chat Noir?"
"Chat Noir's… a little less consistent." the kwami admitted. "It often depends on the state of the world at the time. But considering what the world is like today I'd say that our Chat Noir must be a loyal, reasonable, and level-headed kind of guy. But most importantly," Quinn said importantly. "Chat Noir MUST be kind."
Gabriel raised his eyebrows at the emphasis. "Whatever for?"
"It's imperative to making sure the cat miraculous is less likely to be abused. Ladybug's powers can be abused too but if the person in question doesn't have the intelligence to apply the things their powers create to the situation then it's useless. But the power of destruction doesn't have this limitation. If applied liberally, it can wreak havoc on humanity. That's why when choosing a Chat Noir, they look for kind-hearted conscientious people who think of others over themselves. Giving the power to destroy anything you touch to a selfish hot-head is just asking for trouble."
"I see. And so these traits would be possessed by anyone holding the miraculous?"
"Hey, I'm not guaranteeing anything," Quinn warned. "That's just the general impression I've gotten after literally thousands of years of experience. Take it or leave it."
Getting up, Gabriel opened the curtains to his office's window and looked out at the moon. Likely digesting what Quinn had just told him.
Once more slipping into his bowl of sunflower seeds, Quinn hoped Gabriel wouldn't think to ask what kind of traits were expected of a peacock miraculous holder.
Because he wasn't sure he would like the answer.
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