Summary

Content warnings for this page include: cult and cult tactics, codependency, homophobia, religious guilt

Mac's a loyal bastard and loveable dog. Perpetually lost in the depths of his emotions, he wrestles with an ever-shifting sense of identity, amplified when he learns in Astral's cult that his magical powers work only in tandem with someone else's. Prone to condependency with Georgie, Mac's moral compass points him as north as it can, but he can only take so much southern temptation, as Teresa sometimes exploits.

In the original story, Mac is a wee lad at 19, but in other stories he's grown up into his mid 30s. He has shaggy black hair, a small mustache, and puppydog eyes.

Personality

Inside Mac are two dogs: anxiety and loyalty. They never leave him alone, even though they'll sometimes turn into guilt and codependency. He blusters sweetly to do the right thing with the messages of his Christian parents ringing around in the back of his mind.

His weak will is influenced by the hypnotic suggestion that he is frequently under.

Mac is autistic and has ADHD and spent a lot of time in his older brother's shadow as the incompetent queer younger brother. The inferiority complex isn't helped when he spent a lot of his time looking very anxious about it. It's the baleful puppy eyes.

Likes

• Being outside
• Georgie
• Cher
• Farm animals
• Pills
• Beer
• Unconditional love

Dislikes

• Reading
• Fishing
• Being left out
• Pears

Savvies

• Woodcarving
• Lifting things
• Driving

Ineptitudes

• Lying
• Resisting temptation
• Standing up for himself

Magic Powers

In the original Connection story, he begins his terran magic training slowly, mostly in the context of sex magic with Astral. When an accident involving Mac's older brother Boone occurs, Astral learns that Mac can act like a magical amplifier and redirect magical energy from himself toward others.

In other universes, his powers are that he's got supernatural strength.

Appearance

Body Features

Mac is stocky and short with a shaggy black mullet and tan skin. He's fuzzy like a dog with thick body hair, and he wears a pencil mustache and chin goatee (variably wispy or full). His face is round-ish with a long, thin, pointed nose.

Sometimes he's trans, but never goes through an estrogenizing puberty.

Clothing and Dress

He prefers bell bottoms when given a choice, and he needs a sherpa-lined denim jacket like a thunder blanket for dogs.

History

The current year is 1969.

Born on April 19th, [1937-1950] Mac Anthony Carroll was born to Mr. and Mrs. Carroll in a nowhere town in Oklahoma. His older brother Boone is in high school. He went to the local public school, worked on his family's farm, and went to church.

Mac didn't have to think about whether he was gay, only how to hide it. Boone was always teasing Mac for his queerness (which he learned later was projecting), but that influence went away when Boone was arrested and imprisoned for grand theft auto and aggravated assault.

With Boone out of the picture, all eyes were on Mac. Unable to stomach his parents' increasing suspicion about his sexuality, Mac ran away to San Francisco. Or, well, he tried, but he ended up in LA.

Somehow, he meets Georgie: a party, at school, at a gay bookstore. They fall in love immediately, and Georgie teaches Mac how to love himself. He gets to feel powerful and useful when he protects her, even from herself.

Usually through Georgie, Mac meets Astral and Teresa. They intimidate or outright scare him with their combination of crazy, magical, and powerful. He's instantly attracted to Astral but averts his gaze when he learns Astral's married. Astral wastes no time coming onto Mac, so his guilt does not stick around for long.

At some point, Astral knocks Mac up after Teresa's second kid (whether Mac is trans or not, there is magic).

Relationships

Astral: god king

Mac is overwhelmed by Astral's mind and sexual stamina, but he's stupidly attracted to him. Unfortunately, he regards Astral as a functioning addict and is someone to be emulated. Astral's alienness is terrifying, but he wields his power for good, and it's not like he suspects that Astral's winging this whole Connection thing. That would be dangerous.

Teresa: goddess queen

Mac and Teresa have one thing in common: Georgie's affection. Other than that, the two don't have much rapport. Teresa terrifies him because she's a powerful alien, and he doesn't know if she's capable of killing him. She surprises him often, and Mac's not great with surprises. The two will engage in sex if the situation calls for it (like a magic ritual), but they're not sexually or romantically attracted to each other.

Georgie: girl-/boyfriend

Mac loves Georgie so much. They're best friends and would die for each other. When he first meets her in the original Connection story, he's taken aback by how cool she is and wants to have her confidence. He thinks they're exclusive and doesn't know that she's in a polycule, and he doesn't take it well when he finds out. But they build their relationship up even stronger. When she needs help, he's there for her.

Meta

Character Inspiration

• Bobby Briggs
• Soldier (TF2)

Origin of Name

Mac's very early source is from a canon completely unrelated to the character he is now, but when we were coming up with a full name for him we thought it'd be funny if his initials spelled out MAC, so then we just looked at baby names that made sense for the time period and location to pick the names Anthony and Carroll.