nickmackenna

[nickmackenna]

ANDREW .

OPEN STARTER —

          WHEN ANDREW STEPS OUT through the back door of the kleins’ mansion, there’s already a thin dusting of white covering the impeccably kept lawn of their back garden. the noise of the gala fades to a faraway buzz as soon as the door swings shut behind him, and for the first time in hours, he allows for his face to fall. 

          reaching into the inside pocket of his suite jacket for his lighter and pack of cigarettes, he approaches one of the carved stone benches placed along the outside walls — one that’s just close enough to the massive building to be sheltered. a moment and a high stride later, he’s sitting on top of the bench with his feet on the seat, elbows braced against his knees while he cups the tip of the cigarette and the flame he’s holding to it with his hand. when it finally catches, he sits in silence — watching the white smoke he exhales melt snowflakes mid-air — until the noise from inside spikes, then fades again; letting him know he’s no longer alone.

          “ glad i’m not the only one in need of a break from the festivities. ” he’s plucked the cigarette from his lips and is leaning forward so the door is in his line of sight; a lopsided smile back on his face, as if it’d never been gone in the first place.

the night seemed to be dragging on longer than it needed to , but he wasn’t exactly upset about it . just wanted it to be over with , so that they could let the weight of the past couple of weeks fall off their shoulders and move onto the next thing that was bound to pop up . there was always a next thing , and he was looking forward to the peace they’d get in between . nick had been in the process of getting his ear talked off when he noticed andrew slip out the back door — the pros of being the person everyone chose to strike a conversation with . this had been the sixth lengthy conversation he’d been roped into for the night , and all he really wanted to do was go back to spending time with his friends . so , he made a quick exit to the topic , trying his best not to be rude ... and then he was out the backdoor . it took a second for his eyes to adjust to the dark , as well as get used to the silence of the snowfall opposed to the chatter inside . andrews voice caught his attention before he found where he was sitting , bringing a small smile to his lips as he headed over — taking a joint out of its case as he did . ❝ yeah ... ❞ nick mumbled , a soft sigh coming after it . he leaned down to grab andrews lighter off the bench , using it to light the end . ❝ i’ve heard , like , way too many pointless stories tonight . oh , but the smiths cat is ❛ missing ❜ again . ❞ his comment comes with an eye roll , knowing that the answer to that mystery was always simply that the neighbors gave it a reason to sneak out — treats . as the smoke starts , nick places the lighter back down and takes a long drag . he remains standing , shifting a little in place due to the chill in the air . exhaling smoke , his eyes start to scan the garden ... eventually leading up to the house . ❝ why do you think they did it ? ❞ he eventually asks , the question that’d been on his mind since they put all the clues together .

[nickmackenna]

JUNO .

juno would never admit it out loud - and if she ever did, she would deny it happened - but she’d always wanted a relationship with her parents. when she was young and they saw her more often, not that it was a lot even then, she would make up stories about where they were when they left. off meeting with foreign powers and slaying dragons and being secret agents - anything to distract from the debilitating thought that plagued juno constantly. that they simply didn’t want to see her. 

as she grew up, though, the feeling of loss slowly turned into the feeling of abandonment, and with that came the anger. she rarely unleashed it, knowing that if she did it would be a sort of admittance that what her parents were doing was hurting her, and she’d rather die than let them know that they had any power over her. instead, she would shrug at every question, a blind indifference to the two people who had brought her into the world. and who could blame her? a post card from austin for her birthday (three days late, of course), two phone calls in a week once when they had a moment of concern after a meeting with a psychic who said juno would be getting herself into grave danger. that was all she’d gotten in the last half a year. 

so it came as a surprise to everyone, juno included, when she announced to her friends that she’d be embarking on a monthlong trip to the mountains with her parents. she told herself that if it went bad, she’d give up on ever having a relationship with them - a bold statement for someone as secretly wishy washy as juno. the mountains themselves were beautiful, the quality time was not. her dad brought along his new girlfriend, a contortionist that looked to be not much older than juno, and her mother, though she tried to tell juno that she was ‘okay with it! really!’ looked about ready to push her off the top of mount whitney. it was tense and awkward and felt more like another performance her parents were putting on than an attempt to garner a relationship with their daughter. 

“so,” juno huffed, dumping a duffel bag full of clothes onto her bed and taking in the mess, “my dad’s new girlfriend seems about ready to become my new mom.” turning to her companion, who she’d begged to come sit with her while she unpacked, she laughed a hollow laugh. “she tried to tell me she was excited to give me ‘boy advice’ which, like, you’re dating my father, pass.” the amount of restraint required to keep her tone even and calm was staggering. “did i miss anything interesting?”

working the case over the past month had felt extremely different , being down one of their companions . he couldn’t deny that the absence was noticeable ... especially at the cat . needless to say , he missed her . not only in the shed , but constantly having a friend to hangout with while behind the bar as well . most of the other tenders were older , and although they all loved each other like family , there was a different dynamic . when juno had told them she was going away , nick was both happy that she’d have some time with her parents — hopeful that it’d go positively , and also worried about what if it didn’t . he followed casually through the house he’d been through many times by now , snacking on a bag of chips he’d picked up in the kitchen . a small scoff escaped at her summary , immediately finding a spot to sit — which ended up being on the edge of her dresser . ❝ but did she give you any , though ? ❞ nick questioned , amusement clear in his tone . ❝ because i’d like to hear that . ❞ though it hadn’t been long since she returned , he already felt like they’d been back to hanging out for days . there was a pause after her question came up , only to take another handful of chips and finish it off . ❝ yeah , ❞ he nods . ❝ the cat burned to the ground without you there to stop it — no one knew what to do . madness . ❞ his jokes slides off with another grin , finally discarding the snacks to rest beside him . ❝ oh , and we got chased out of tophams mansion by robbers . ❞ a casual shrug is offered with the honest truth , which almost sounds more unbelievable than the joke ... had it been any other group of friends they were talking about . as he glances around the room , he tries to think of a way to bring up the trip casually . he was genuinely curious to how it went , hoping for the most part it would’ve been good news to share . ❝ he really brought his new girlfriend , huh ? ❞ the tone came out softer , and he began to think about what he’d feel like if his father had started dating again . maybe he’d be happy , or maybe there’d be a bitter feeling , holding onto the hope that one day his mom would return . ❝ did you at least have a good time ? ❞

[nickmackenna]

ELISE .

starter for @nickmackenna·

– THE SHED’S BRIGHTLY DECORATED SINCE MILO HELPED HER WITH IT LAST WEEK, garlands and strings of lights hanging down from the dingy ceiling. she doesn’t know why she doesn’t just invite nick to her house, but she can’t stop OVERTHINKING what andrew said to her, and she figured this was a nice, neutral space, sitting side-by-side on the couch. “okay, yeah, i baked as usual, but i –” she grabs another neatly wrapped box beside her and hands it to him. “well, i did something else too. don’t freak out, i just had a little extra time.”

the winter seemed to have crept up so quickly , but that’s always how it went . it wasn’t a bad thing , nick always enjoyed seeing the decorations go up around the small town as the snow began to fall — including the scene elise and milo had done with the shed . it was bright , peaceful , and comforting . a nice change of pace after what they’d been working on for the past couple of weeks , a calm after the storm of a case . with everything they’d been so wrapped up in , he’d almost forgotten about getting gifts for his friends . it wasn’t until the case came to a close that he realized the holidays were quickly approaching and it was time to go back to regular , everyday life . ❝ i hope it’s not anything , like , alive . ❞ he comments while taking the box , offering a small grin as he does . quick to unwrap the neat paper , his gaze falls on a pair of hand-knit gloves — perfected so well that he wouldn’t have guessed that they weren’t store bought apart from the fact that they fit his style so well . his smile only grows , remembering back to the many times he’d commented on the cold that’d overcome the town while walking her and her dad home . ❝ these are really great , thank you . ❞ there’s a warm feeling that settles in with the amount of thought gone into the gift , something he doesn’t want to overthink too much , so he shifts to take a not-as-neatly wrapped box from his backpack . ❝ i was going to give you the test i scored an 82 on thanks to you ... ❞ offering the box with a small smirk , he shrugs a little bit . ❝ but i got something else instead . ❞

[nickmackenna]

changing my tags because i didn’t vibe pls ignore me

[nickmackenna]

TERRENCE .

The streets were usually dead this time of night, but the the light’s on Terrence’s car cut through the sleeping darkness of Nick’s street. The boy shuffled around in his car seat to catch any sign of life from the house. He couldn’t tell if the house was still awake or not, but it didn’t stop him from calling Nick’s phone. 

“Get the fuck outta bed, Nicky. Listen, I’ve got the seat warmer on in my car and it’s calling your pretty little cheeks. Me. You. 3 packs of Redbull. A large bundle of red yarn I just bought from the craft store. A frozen bag of pizza rolls. A 4th pack of Redbull. Perhaps some Adderall I stole from my mom’s medicine cabinet. You know what that all means? It’s how we’re spending our Saturday night. Get in the car cause we’re pulling an all nighter, baby. The bad boys of Sedona are gunna whip up some theories for the next Sleuths meeting.”

// @nickmackenna·

it seemed like only ten minutes ago he’d finally hit the sheets — probably because , when he glances at the light of his phone through the dark room , he realizes that it had been . still , the exhaustion from a long days ❛ work ❜ and then an actual shift at the cat isn’t enough to keep him from pulling himself out of bed . he only grabs essentials before he’s rushing out of his room , darting down the stairs and out of the back door ... all while trying to be quiet enough to not wake anyone else in his house . he makes his way from the back yard to the front , trying his best to be hidden enough to sneak up to the drivers side of the window . his hands fall against the car , a devilish grin on his lips when they do . ❝ good morning , sunshine ! ❞ nick chimes , before pushing himself off the car and running over to the passenger side . in a swift movement , he reaches through the window to unlock the door and drops down into the seat , one of his feet coming up so his knee can rest against his chest as he questions , ❝ where we off to ? ❞

[nickmackenna]

ELISE .

starter for @nickmackenna·

– HER DAD’S AT HOME AND SHE KNOWS THAT. the sheriff has actually had a pretty good week, he solved that case down at the general store and he’s sort of riding a high. they went out to dinner yesterday. so, elise knows damn well he’s not at the pub – she knows who IS though, and she tells herself that this visit is for research alone. after all, nick overhears all sorts of things from the patrons at his job, it’ll be good to compare notes. but she doesn’t know why she doesn’t just SAY that, why she’d rather pretend that seeing him is the mark of convenience rather than intention. maybe she doesn’t want to give him the wrong idea – maybe what andrew’s said really has gotten to her head. she’s self-conscious now.

elise walks into the cat with false confidence, leaning over the counter until she catches nick’s attention. “my…dad’s not here, is he?” she asks, knowing her voice faltered slightly, but she hopes he’s too busy behind the bar to notice. after all, she hasn’t even bothered glancing around the bar.

the bar had been fairly busy that night — enough to keep him on his feet , at least . each time it seemed to slow down , a new wave of familiar faces showed up to give him something to do . he’d been clearing shot glasses from a newly opened area when his attention finally is caught , a small smirk taking to his lips as he slings a cloth over his shoulder and makes his way down the bar . nick leans over a little , only to hear her over the conversations going on around them . he then leans back , glancing around the cluttered establishment . ❝ uhh , i don’t think so ... ❞ he mumbles back , offering an apologetic look once his attention falls back to her . it’s quickly replaced by a smile as he stands up straight again . ❝ you want me to ask if anyone’s seen him ? ❞ with a glance to the clock , he realizes he’d been too busy working to take a break . although his offer came natural , he somewhat hopes there’s more reason for her to stick around .

[nickmackenna]

[ ROSS LYNCH, CISMALE, HE/HIM ] have you seen NICK ‘NICKY MACKENNA around sedona? NICKY is an STUDENT / BAR TENDER, but they’re also THE GOSSIP in the sedona sleuths, so you’ve probably seen them around the firehouse shed. they’re known for being ALLOCENTRIC and FELICIFIC, but they’re also known to be CALCULATING and OPINIONATED. when they’re not at the shed, i can usually find them at JENNY’S. i can always recognize them by their too-ripped jeans and oversized hoodies, too-loud laughter in otherwise quiet rooms, a beat up bike that should’ve gone to the junkyard years ago, drinks in a no-spill cup because he kept ruining important stuff.

The Gossip. This character knows everyone and everything going on in town. They’re a really talkative person and they often overhear useful information. Many townspeople often go to them with tips.

this will be short™ and in bullet points because i suck at intros ( she says , x100 )

𝓹𝓮𝓻𝓼𝓸𝓷𝓪𝓵𝓲𝓽𝔂 + 𝓫𝓪𝓬𝓴𝓰𝓻𝓸𝓾𝓷𝓭 .

allocentric — a collectivistic personality attribute whereby people center their attention and actions on other people rather than themselves .

felicific — relating to or promoting increased happiness .

nick grew up in a large family , with three older sisters and an older brother . he was the youngest and therefore was taught a lot by his older siblings , picking up a lot of their traits and becoming comfortable in large groups of people . his mother left when he was young , too young to remember her . his father stepped up and took on extra jobs , while still providing his kids a happy and healthy family to belong to .

so basically , he’s really outgoing and never really had trouble with fitting in . people often take to him very easily and always have , so it’s rare that he ever met someone and didn’t get along with them . still , he felt like he was kind of bouncing between friend groups and didn’t have a solid place to be until he fit in with the sleuths .

he got interested in mysteries first through books , and then projected that into real life . not really understanding the entire story of why his mom left , he kind of treated that as a case and tried to solve it — which , obviously , didn’t work . but that was his first introduction , that he doesn’t really choose to talk about .

although not the worst™ , he’s not really school or test smart and didn’t really want to pursue further education at first . after talking with his dad , he decided to go to scc and took mechanic/engineering courses . he mostly stays because it’s a good access point to meet a lot of people , therefore make a lot of friends and have a lot of resources for information when they’re working on a case .

almost the second he turned twenty one he got his license to serve alcohol and applied for a job at the fat cat . nick thought this would be the best use of his role , he’s often talking up a storm to the various faces that place themselves at his bar for the night . he learns a lot of his information this way , as it’s easy for people to confide in him . the shifts start late at night and go through ‘til early morning , but he still always gets up to meet the sleuths on time and will probably go to any party despite having to work in , like , five hours .

while he has a pretty big mouth and a ..... bright .... loud ..... personality , nick doesn’t really like to be the center of attention . he’s good at shifting his demeanor based on who he’s talking to , which might be why a lot of people open up to him . though not exactly fake , nick is just ... easygoing , he vibes to sum it up .

his biggest fault is the fact that he can be semi-judgmental , and gossipy himself . though he doesn’t spread what he knows about other people around the town , he’s quick to share almost everything and anything he finds out with the other sleuths even if it doesn’t relate to the case , or they’re not working on one at all . he’d never judge anything that someone tells him to their face , but he forms his own opinions . 

calculating — acting in a scheming and ruthlessly determined way .

opinionated — conceitedly assertive and dogmatic in one's opinions .

𝓱𝓮𝓪𝓭𝓬𝓪𝓷𝓸𝓷𝓼 .

family means almost everything to him , he sees most of the sleuths as more siblings . the only time he gets really upset with other people and could start popping off is if they said anything negative about the group orrrr his real family .

he’s never really had a serious relationship , and doesn’t really have interest in pursing one at the moment . he feels like he has enough on his plate and feelings would just ...... complicate things . classy

probably the youngest ( by like a month ) in the group , always has bruises/scrapes and probably doesn’t remember where they came from

definitely the kind of doesn’t-like-to-be-alone person , he’s used to having a loud environment around him and his house is pretty quiet since most of his siblings have moved out . if any of the gang has to go anywhere , he’ll probably offer to come along

can be airheaded at times , sometimes runs his mouth and says things he doesn’t really mean

he has aspirations to leave eventually , even though he’s attached to all of them and their hometown . doesn’t know how he’ll do it , and probably hasn’t brought it up to any of them .

𝔀𝓪𝓷𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓬𝓸𝓷𝓷𝓮𝓬𝓽𝓲𝓸𝓷𝓼 .

admiration — someone he looks up to , maybe they’re nicer overall than him or they just always know what to do in the situations he doesn’t . he wishes he could be more like them , but also loves what makes them stand out from the others . crush — nick’s probably been into them for a long time , but never really acted on it . he doesn’t really get the point of relationships and would fear if anything happened it’d cause a rift or something in the group . still , he’s pined forever and although he tried to get over it through 10000 different means , he hasn’t . neighbors — they’ve always lived next to each other , maybe spend more time with each other and have grown a little closer . this is the person he relies on most of the time , trusts more than anything , and knows will always be there for him . partners in crime — basically always causing havoc together , but also always team up to work on whatever they’re doing . essentially they’re terrible together but also , like , super good .

[nickmackenna]

local man sees really cool sword in pawn shop window

“holy shit” he has said

[nickmackenna]