application for bete noire
1. Player Information
Name (or internet handle): Brandon
Current characters in Bete Noire: None at the moment!
2. Character Information
Name: Angelus / Angel
Livejournal Username: inakoipond
Fandom: Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Angel
Image: http://l-userpic.livejournal.com/106875886/33076394
Reserve: http://magistrated.livejournal.com/1299.html?thread=1626131#t1626131
3. Character Information II
Age/Appearance:
Both Angel and Angelus are 249 years old. At first glance, he resembles that of a man in his mid to late twenties. He’s passed as college age before. Usually his hair is gelled up. He’s built and has brown hair and brown eyes. Both Angel and Angelus give off a distinct look. Angelus has been described as the man with the face of an angel. Upon first glance, he looks unassuming. When in “gameface” Angelus’ features are rigid, animalistic. His eyes are yellow, his face is wrinkled and for lack of a better term, bumpy, and he has very apparent fangs. Angel on the other hand has a weight to him from years of guilt.
History: http://buffy.wikia.com/wiki/Angel
Personality:
Angelus
Describing Angelus as a caged animal wouldn’t be a stretch. Most of the time. He spends most of his time trapped inside a do-gooder, forced to watch him save puppies and people and drink massive amounts of otter blood. Inside Angel (when Angel is souled essentially) he waits, bides his time, pays attention to every. little. detail.
When is he is let out, he capitalizes on everything he’s learned. Angelus is calculating. He chooses a target, slowly breaks them down and then when they can’t possibly take any more - he breaks them. He did this with Drusilla. He regards her as his masterpiece. Drusilla was a young girl who could see the future whose family he killed. He then stalked her for months, tracked her down to a convent, killed everyone there, and then finally turned her, ensuring that he had driven her to insanity - forever. Angelus tortured, raped and pillaged for years. He massacred whole villages. He is very imaginative. And he could teach courses on torture.
Angelus is also very patient. He can wait months, slowly messing with a person’s mind, hurting their friends, leaving them “gifts” so to speak. He’s artistic but usually uses his skills to psych his targets out. He leaves Buffy a picture of her sleeping as well as a picture of her mother at one point. To Angelus, Buffy made him, made Angel feel and for that she had to pay. What was worse, was when he and Buffy were possessed and he had to feel that love first hand.
Angelus in every way is more fun then Angel - or at least he believes this. He’s looser and more free. He doesn’t worry or dwell on those he’s killed. He is without a soul. In a lot of ways, Angelus just loves to stir the pot. If he can make something worse, he will. And it gets worse the longer he’s inside Angel. Angelus pinpoints exact ways at needling those around him. He has a knack of calling out inner worries, thoughts and latent feelings. Angelus leaves nobody in his path unscathed. He does the most damage he can. And he will do anything to not be put back in his cage.
Angelus loves a challenge. If a victim’s a sitting duck there’s no fun in the torture or the kill. Angelus enjoys the chase, greatly. He’ll reenact a horror movie “slow walk” just because he knows he’s going to win - and if he doesn’t, it only gives him more drive to eventually claim his prize.
Angelus? Is psychotic. There is no question. But, he isn’t sociopathic. He feels things. Angel’s curse in a way is his guilt - while Angelus’ is humanity. Whether or not Angel/Angelus are completely separate personalities hasn’t been agreed upon but one thing is true, both Angel and Angelus refer to each other as separate people . They mock the other, talk about them as if they are a separate person. Neither wants to be like the “other half.”
Angelus in a lot of ways is very close to what we’ve seen of Liam: hedonistic, a drinker. He has no inhibitions, really. In a lot of ways, Angelus is a teenager having fun and raising some hell.
For him, it’s not about killing people, it’s about getting the most out of it. For him, torture and killing is an art. So, he takes his time, he waits for months, years even - for the pay off. He is very meticulous and he predicts his enemy's moves before making his own.
While he does have impulsive moments, moments of anger, they seldom occur.
In Billy, Angel says that Angelus never kills out of anger, but out of pleasure and pain. He and Angelus don’t feel anger. Angelus kills for the sport of it. As an actor practices his craft his entire life, Angelus takes killing, maiming, and torturing seriously.
He believes he has nothing to fear, the worst thing the white hats can do is reensoul him. They won’t actually kill him because they need Angel. While Angel is his curse, he’s also his get out of jail free card. But in some ways, he’d rather be killed than reensouled. He hates being inside Angel.
He’s a legend, and uses that to his advantage. His exploits are known throughout the world he’s from and when he does emerge, he usually tries to rally the troops and gain followers. People to do his dirty work if need be. Though Angelus is more of the getting his own hands dirty type, there are some things that can be done by others - i.e. his minions.
Angelus really revels in chaos. Because of that, he’s unpredictable. While he has a specific MO he always deviates slightly. He finds a new way to really dig into someone or a new innovative line of torture. He’s constantly reinventing himself and he is constantly ahead of the good guys because of it.
Angelus’ priority is Angelus. He is out for number one. A few times, he’s inadvertently helped the good guys just because he helps himself first, such as killing the beast. If he’s working with someone but suddenly their needs or wants change, he’ll strip himself of the alliance either out of self preservation or simply because.
He loves mindgames, something he cultivated from being with Darla.
Angelus doesn’t do well with authority and he certainly does not respect his elders. Despite not being the oldest out there, he believes he is the best. When meeting the Master, Angelus insults him. Evil shouldn’t be organized with rules and a court. Angelus serves nobody but himself. Even with Darla, there were times they separated for months.
Angelus doesn’t do well with authority and he certainly does not respect his elders. Despite not being the oldest out there, he believes he is the best. When meeting the Master, Angelus insults him. Evil shouldn’t be organized with rules and a court. Angelus serves nobody but himself. Even with Darla, there were times they separated for months.
Angel
Angel’s personality is essentially a series of contradictions. Despite being turned at age twenty-six, he was known for his drinking and promiscuity. He was quite immature for his age already before being sired by Darla. The Gypsy curse grounded him indefinitely and guilt overcame him. Over the years, he had no choice but to mature. Because he became a sort of recluse, he turned to books and his photographic memory ensured that he learned what he read. Angel is extremely intelligent and he enjoys reading. He’d rather stay home reading then go to a movie. The contradiction comes when he can act like a sixteen year old teenager. He can get to the point where he is actually whining and if he doesn’t get his way. He can seriously sulk.
Angel is a world class brooder. He will sit alone in the dark and recount past sins. He will contemplate where he has been in his life, where he could possibly be going, as well as a time in the (hopefully not too distant future) where he becomes human.
At his core, Angel is a champion. That is how he sees himself. At first, he doesn’t want to charge clients of theirs because they’re helping people in need. Angel will defend those who need it. He doesn’t judge a being based on their race. Being a demon and a vampire helps him with that. In a way, Angel will never belong completely to the vampire world or to the human world to him, that is his true curse. That moment of true happiness is just a party favor.
Despite regarding himself as a righteous champion, Angel can be quite selfish. In season 2, before taking it upon himself to dispatch Darla and Drusilla, he fires his team when he realizes they’re holding him back from doing what he thinks he should do.
Angel has a very dark side to him because of his history as Angelus. As I mentioned in the abilities section, he is a master in torture techniques. For years, he purposefully cut off emotion towards others and during season 2, he revisits that idea. He goes solo and does a few morally grey things and only stumbles into helping people. Because of that, Angel’s destiny involves the people surrounding him because without them, it is easy for him to veer off in another direction.
At periods of time, Angel suffers from ennui, dealing with both his past and the fact that he’s cursed to be eternally alone. But, as an update, Angel has learned that when having sex with a woman who isn’t Buffy, or that he doesn’t achieve that moment of one true happiness with, he can in fact get busy. This is shown through his brief relationship with Nina the werewolf. But, it takes Angel a lot to actually form a real attachment with a woman romantically. With Buffy, he fell in love from afar, fascinated by her. With Cordelia, that love grew out of friendship, trust and respect. Because he blames himself for a lot, it’s hard for him to let himself feel something real especially because it never ends well for him. He turned into Angelus with Buffy and Cordelia ascended, completely thwarting any chance they had with one another.
Angel is very observant. He pays attention to how a person acts in different situations and because of that, he’s very good at predicting outcomes. He gives Cordelia a gift of clothes because he knows how she will react and that despite something really “meaning something more” at that time, she’ll love clothes the most. He really gets to know the people he’s around.
Constantly, Angel worries about the demon inside him, Angelus. He can feel him there beneath the surface. He is ashamed of what he used to be, ashamed of what he’s done. Nothing he has done he can take back so he does what he good he can. Something that Angel has always done, is he has always followed through with what he thinks is right. At the time, taking over Wolfram and Hart was right to him. Taking away Connor’s memories was right to him.
Speaking of, Angel is incredibly selfless. When he becomes human in “I Will Remember You” he takes back the day for Buffy. He takes away Connor’s memories in “Home” to give him a better life. Unfortunately, through this, he takes everyone else’s memory of Connor’s existence. He has to live with both of those burdens. Knowing that - at one time - he had happiness in his grasp.
Angel can be a complete dork. This feeds back into his tendency to be a teenager. Little things can really excite and entertain him. Technology is his arch enemy. He hates it. Computers are for everyone else to use. He even has trouble mastering a phone at Wolfram and Heart. Angel has a temper. If you wrong him or his people personally, he will not hesitate to lash out. He’s by no means a pacifist. If he has to, he kicks ass. A part of him definitely likes kicking ass. Angel’s humor can be quite dry when he wants it to be. But, despite being pretty stoic he has a sense of humor - a pretty awesome one if you ask him. He’s a fan of the classics when it comes to movies and music and Barry Manilow is his all time favorite musician.
Angel is a very forgiving person. At first, he may lash out directly (especially with Wesley in the hospital after kidnapping his son) but, over time he forgives. His own son tried to kill him and in the end he gave him a better life. Angel cares about people more than he lets on. A very good way of describing him is the phrase, still waters run deep.
Buffy Summers is Angel’s always and his never. Explaining this further, a part of him will always love her but he knows that they can never be together. Partially, this is because of the curse and partially because he can’t let himself be with her. Without him, she is better off. He truly believes this. Part of this was drilled into him by her mother but a part of him always knew.
Cordelia is Angel’s could have been and probably the woman he loved the deepest in the most unconditional way. His respect for her grew over time as well as his concern for her regarding her visions. Taking care of Connor together and growing closer had been a natural progression and somewhere between sleeping in the same bed with a baby and calling about meeting each other they were in love. It took time but Angel knew in the back of his mind what they were going to say to each other that night. And, even before he knows it was Jasmine who slept with Connor and not Cordelia, he’s seen forgiving her for it in “Awakening.”
Angel will always love Connor. He is his son. No matter what he does, Angel understands Holtz had misled him. Connor was dealt a really rough hand and Angel can’t blame him but when he does act out, Angel won’t hesitate to lay the smack down. He believes in discipline. And because he failed with his own father (he was a disgrace in his eyes) he didn’t want to fail with Connor so he gave him a chance at a real life.
Darla. Angel has never and will never love Darla. That said, his feelings for her are extremely complicated. When all is said and done, he feels something for her. He feels that he can do something when he learns she’s dying and even prepares himself to do so. After her second transformation, he readies himself to kill her and sets both she and Drusilla on fire. He’s extremely sexually attracted to her. She’s starred in several of his dreams. Unfortunately, that will never change. But, he will steal feel something towards her especially since she carried his child.
Nina comes at a time when Angel is at peace with his curse and has discovered that not every sexual escapade needs to be accompanied by deeper feelings. Things were very dark towards the end and he needed an outlet, a sexual outlet and he saw something in Nina that he saw in himself. There’s the idea of her inner beast. All that being said, Angel has a sex drive and he has needs like anybody else, he just stops himself from indulging in them usually and Nina comes at a time when he allows himself that release.
Sexual Preferences/Orientation:
Angelus delights in sex, both consensual and non-consensual. For him, sex is about power. Like Angel, Angelus’ sexual orientation is straight but not rigidly so. Spike and Angel have referred to a time the two of them had sex. And for Angelus, who was known for rape, I wouldn’t say it’s a large stretch to say that he could’ve raped men at all. But, canonically, he is heterosexual and prefers sex with a woman. And though he definitely had a pseudo-relationship with Darla for years, he was not monogamous. Sex is not the be all and end all for Angelus but he certainly enjoys it and might not say no if it comes up - depending on who’s offering - or who he’s hurting/overpowering. Angelus has also taunted someone about defiling their dead body - but a penchant for necrophilia hasn’t actually been confirmed.
Angel is also heterosexual but he regards sex differently. If he is in a relationship, it will be monogamously - not that he’s been in many. Circumstances are also a huge factor. Extreme frustration, apathy and in late season 5, a warm body are reasons he’s had sex. Angel also worries about his curse but over time he realizes that sex with just anyone won’t trigger it. For his curse, it’s about perfect happiness and a lot has to line up for Angel to be perfectly happy as illustrated in “Awakening.” Also, saying Angel and Angelus are in fact one in the same, Angel’s been with men as well but would not choose a man over a woman. He prefers women.
Powers:
- Enhanced strength
- Proficiency in medieval weaponry, and combat in general
- In “game-face” fangs emerge and his face becomes more demonic
- He has an extensive knowledge of both demonic and human history being as he reads a hell of a lot
- Enhanced hearing and sense of smell. [ they can smell fear, arousal, also if someone had sex and what hair color the partner in question had but this is also due to humans having a particular smell to them ]
- Proficiency in the languages, English, Korean, Tibetan, French, Italian, Spanish, German, Greek, Latin, Romanian and Russian
- Profiency in psychological and physical forms of torture
- Photographic memory
- Skilled artist
- The unfortunate ability to burn and char and then turn to dust in the sunlight.
Reason for playing:
While I’ve played Angel as strictly Angel before, Angelus has always fascinated me, a vampire who’d rather plunge the world into hell then deal with real human feelings for Buffy, who snarks first and whose cocky switch is always set to on. Exploring their differences and exploring them more than the series themselves have done is an exciting thought. I love panfandom game, exploring characters outside comfortable surroundings. Both Angel and Angelus adapt in different ways. In Bete Noire, I’d like for Angelus to wreak his own kind of havoc, setting his sights on Angel’s friends and of course, Buffy and hers. Down the line, there could always be the possibly of him being ensouled and playing through the guilt Angel would feel - it could be a real wonderful storyline to play through. I think there’s a good longevity to him - or them. And in all honesty, both Angelus and Angel are fun characters to play. But in very different ways. I'm also intrigued to explore Angel's darker yearnings if that point is reached. This was briefly touched on in Season 2 and following up on that road would be highly interesting.
5. Samples
First-Person:
Angelus
You know, a guy destroys this great evil, de-blots out the sun and he doesn’t even get a thank you. No bottle of wine. You don’t call, you don’t write - I made it more inconvenient for me and yet I don’t really think you’re all that grateful .
And then I get the shaft and realize that Dorothy isn’t in Kansas, anymore that she went over the freakin’ rainbow.
So, now in addition to understanding why there’s no gift basket for saving your precious sun, I also have a few questions. Like, where the hell I am and how much time you would like me to take to kill you. You know, the basics.
Angel
Okay. I’m going to try and keep calm. But, I am not happy. People who kidnap vampires have death wishes. I know something about having a death wish and I just gotta say, it’s not a good road. So, cut your losses, come out in the open and let me help. Or, hide and we’ll do this the hard way. But, I really think you should go with the easy way. I’m nicer that way. I have more patience. Everyone stays happy.
Third-Person:
On the one hand, he felt proud. He was amused for the time being. His idea of a party involved a little more one-on-one time but providing running commentary to the Monday Night Beast ball game wasn’t exactly boring. Faith had actually thought she could make a dent in the block of solid rock. And sure, the sun was back and that was not as good of a development but Angelus could work with it. It was what he was used to. He was a creature of the night after all. But, it really was a bit of a setback. Of course, what did Angelus do but deal with setbacks.
Being reensouled. Setback. Being inside Angel. Setback. Being in a cage. Setback. And yet…
Here he was. Waiting out the sunlight inside a warehouse just thinking up ways to make the newest Slayer squirm, itching to get out there and really take back the night. Two poor souls who stopped by the warehouse lost their lives but what could he say, a growing vampire needed to eat.
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the sun went down.
Hopping down off one of the cargo containers, Angelus didn’t bother being quiet. He grabbed a nearby abandoned pipe and began to toss it from hand to hand, whistling a happy tune. Under different circumstances he could’ve been in a musical. A bloodier, more violent version of a musical.
Outside, he paused. Glancing upward, he realized Faith must’ve taken down his sign.
“I had worked hard on that!” he mocked, tilting his head. “Nobody appreciates art anymore.” But, then he looked closer. The top of the warehouse looked - well, it looked different then the night before. It was smaller. Angelus hadn’t remembered wandering into another building. No, he had been stuck there pretty much all freaking day and he had a bone to pick with the hook throwing slayer. Not to mention with the witch who had gotten her mojo on. Waste of mojo if you asked him. Changing the building, that was rich.
Meandering back inside, he stopped again.
“Wasn’t really planning on taking a stroll through the Twilight Zone …” He slowly took a 360 degree turn. Now the inside was different. Completely. This warehouse had a conveyor belt. And boxes. And an office upstairs. “Faaaaith?” he called out, the first name on his lips. “Wes?” Had they seriously transported him somewhere else?
“Well, what’re they gonna do without Angel, now?”
Third-Person #2:
Some nights, Angelus stayed awake replaying the most vanilla sex he’d been a part of in centuries. Not that he had been in the driver’s seat - more like the trunk - but just taking part in such cliché lovemaking - well, it left a bad taste in his mouth. It practically made him heave knowing how gentle Angel had been with Buffy, how considerate, how loving.
Love clouded fucking.
Making love. What a horrible, disgusting term. The best sex didn’t stem from love or feelings. It came from passion, from desire, from a good old fashioned rutting for the sake of getting off. And the bed? How predictable could he have been? Angelus would’ve taken her right then and there in the rain, against the brick.
Forget unfastening her pants, he would’ve ripped the button right off and yanked Buffy’s pants down. Her neck would’ve been an obstacle but there was no reason that couldn’t have been delayed.
As he ran his fingers down his shaft, Angelus thought about dipping his fingers into her, making her ache her for him. Not Angel. Not, delicate petting but skilled artistry. He thought about removing those fingers and shoving into her until she screamed out his name - or, really, until she screamed. Holding those legs up, ramming into her against that wall, the rain coming down until finally at just the right time, he releases - both in and out of his fantasy.
In his fantasy he takes a bite.
Out of his fantasy, he began to clean himself up. If he ever did have the chance, he’d show Buffy just what she was missing with her precious Angel. What she could have. What could have her. What could fuck her.
Name (or internet handle): Brandon
Current characters in Bete Noire: None at the moment!
2. Character Information
Name: Angelus / Angel
Livejournal Username: inakoipond
Fandom: Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Angel
Image: http://l-userpic.livejournal.com/106875886/33076394
Reserve: http://magistrated.livejournal.com/1299.html?thread=1626131#t1626131
3. Character Information II
Age/Appearance:
Both Angel and Angelus are 249 years old. At first glance, he resembles that of a man in his mid to late twenties. He’s passed as college age before. Usually his hair is gelled up. He’s built and has brown hair and brown eyes. Both Angel and Angelus give off a distinct look. Angelus has been described as the man with the face of an angel. Upon first glance, he looks unassuming. When in “gameface” Angelus’ features are rigid, animalistic. His eyes are yellow, his face is wrinkled and for lack of a better term, bumpy, and he has very apparent fangs. Angel on the other hand has a weight to him from years of guilt.
History: http://buffy.wikia.com/wiki/Angel
Personality:
Angelus
Describing Angelus as a caged animal wouldn’t be a stretch. Most of the time. He spends most of his time trapped inside a do-gooder, forced to watch him save puppies and people and drink massive amounts of otter blood. Inside Angel (when Angel is souled essentially) he waits, bides his time, pays attention to every. little. detail.
When is he is let out, he capitalizes on everything he’s learned. Angelus is calculating. He chooses a target, slowly breaks them down and then when they can’t possibly take any more - he breaks them. He did this with Drusilla. He regards her as his masterpiece. Drusilla was a young girl who could see the future whose family he killed. He then stalked her for months, tracked her down to a convent, killed everyone there, and then finally turned her, ensuring that he had driven her to insanity - forever. Angelus tortured, raped and pillaged for years. He massacred whole villages. He is very imaginative. And he could teach courses on torture.
Angelus is also very patient. He can wait months, slowly messing with a person’s mind, hurting their friends, leaving them “gifts” so to speak. He’s artistic but usually uses his skills to psych his targets out. He leaves Buffy a picture of her sleeping as well as a picture of her mother at one point. To Angelus, Buffy made him, made Angel feel and for that she had to pay. What was worse, was when he and Buffy were possessed and he had to feel that love first hand.
Angelus in every way is more fun then Angel - or at least he believes this. He’s looser and more free. He doesn’t worry or dwell on those he’s killed. He is without a soul. In a lot of ways, Angelus just loves to stir the pot. If he can make something worse, he will. And it gets worse the longer he’s inside Angel. Angelus pinpoints exact ways at needling those around him. He has a knack of calling out inner worries, thoughts and latent feelings. Angelus leaves nobody in his path unscathed. He does the most damage he can. And he will do anything to not be put back in his cage.
Angelus loves a challenge. If a victim’s a sitting duck there’s no fun in the torture or the kill. Angelus enjoys the chase, greatly. He’ll reenact a horror movie “slow walk” just because he knows he’s going to win - and if he doesn’t, it only gives him more drive to eventually claim his prize.
Angelus? Is psychotic. There is no question. But, he isn’t sociopathic. He feels things. Angel’s curse in a way is his guilt - while Angelus’ is humanity. Whether or not Angel/Angelus are completely separate personalities hasn’t been agreed upon but one thing is true, both Angel and Angelus refer to each other as separate people . They mock the other, talk about them as if they are a separate person. Neither wants to be like the “other half.”
Angelus in a lot of ways is very close to what we’ve seen of Liam: hedonistic, a drinker. He has no inhibitions, really. In a lot of ways, Angelus is a teenager having fun and raising some hell.
For him, it’s not about killing people, it’s about getting the most out of it. For him, torture and killing is an art. So, he takes his time, he waits for months, years even - for the pay off. He is very meticulous and he predicts his enemy's moves before making his own.
While he does have impulsive moments, moments of anger, they seldom occur.
In Billy, Angel says that Angelus never kills out of anger, but out of pleasure and pain. He and Angelus don’t feel anger. Angelus kills for the sport of it. As an actor practices his craft his entire life, Angelus takes killing, maiming, and torturing seriously.
He believes he has nothing to fear, the worst thing the white hats can do is reensoul him. They won’t actually kill him because they need Angel. While Angel is his curse, he’s also his get out of jail free card. But in some ways, he’d rather be killed than reensouled. He hates being inside Angel.
He’s a legend, and uses that to his advantage. His exploits are known throughout the world he’s from and when he does emerge, he usually tries to rally the troops and gain followers. People to do his dirty work if need be. Though Angelus is more of the getting his own hands dirty type, there are some things that can be done by others - i.e. his minions.
Angelus really revels in chaos. Because of that, he’s unpredictable. While he has a specific MO he always deviates slightly. He finds a new way to really dig into someone or a new innovative line of torture. He’s constantly reinventing himself and he is constantly ahead of the good guys because of it.
Angelus’ priority is Angelus. He is out for number one. A few times, he’s inadvertently helped the good guys just because he helps himself first, such as killing the beast. If he’s working with someone but suddenly their needs or wants change, he’ll strip himself of the alliance either out of self preservation or simply because.
He loves mindgames, something he cultivated from being with Darla.
Angelus doesn’t do well with authority and he certainly does not respect his elders. Despite not being the oldest out there, he believes he is the best. When meeting the Master, Angelus insults him. Evil shouldn’t be organized with rules and a court. Angelus serves nobody but himself. Even with Darla, there were times they separated for months.
Angelus doesn’t do well with authority and he certainly does not respect his elders. Despite not being the oldest out there, he believes he is the best. When meeting the Master, Angelus insults him. Evil shouldn’t be organized with rules and a court. Angelus serves nobody but himself. Even with Darla, there were times they separated for months.
Angel
Angel’s personality is essentially a series of contradictions. Despite being turned at age twenty-six, he was known for his drinking and promiscuity. He was quite immature for his age already before being sired by Darla. The Gypsy curse grounded him indefinitely and guilt overcame him. Over the years, he had no choice but to mature. Because he became a sort of recluse, he turned to books and his photographic memory ensured that he learned what he read. Angel is extremely intelligent and he enjoys reading. He’d rather stay home reading then go to a movie. The contradiction comes when he can act like a sixteen year old teenager. He can get to the point where he is actually whining and if he doesn’t get his way. He can seriously sulk.
Angel is a world class brooder. He will sit alone in the dark and recount past sins. He will contemplate where he has been in his life, where he could possibly be going, as well as a time in the (hopefully not too distant future) where he becomes human.
At his core, Angel is a champion. That is how he sees himself. At first, he doesn’t want to charge clients of theirs because they’re helping people in need. Angel will defend those who need it. He doesn’t judge a being based on their race. Being a demon and a vampire helps him with that. In a way, Angel will never belong completely to the vampire world or to the human world to him, that is his true curse. That moment of true happiness is just a party favor.
Despite regarding himself as a righteous champion, Angel can be quite selfish. In season 2, before taking it upon himself to dispatch Darla and Drusilla, he fires his team when he realizes they’re holding him back from doing what he thinks he should do.
Angel has a very dark side to him because of his history as Angelus. As I mentioned in the abilities section, he is a master in torture techniques. For years, he purposefully cut off emotion towards others and during season 2, he revisits that idea. He goes solo and does a few morally grey things and only stumbles into helping people. Because of that, Angel’s destiny involves the people surrounding him because without them, it is easy for him to veer off in another direction.
At periods of time, Angel suffers from ennui, dealing with both his past and the fact that he’s cursed to be eternally alone. But, as an update, Angel has learned that when having sex with a woman who isn’t Buffy, or that he doesn’t achieve that moment of one true happiness with, he can in fact get busy. This is shown through his brief relationship with Nina the werewolf. But, it takes Angel a lot to actually form a real attachment with a woman romantically. With Buffy, he fell in love from afar, fascinated by her. With Cordelia, that love grew out of friendship, trust and respect. Because he blames himself for a lot, it’s hard for him to let himself feel something real especially because it never ends well for him. He turned into Angelus with Buffy and Cordelia ascended, completely thwarting any chance they had with one another.
Angel is very observant. He pays attention to how a person acts in different situations and because of that, he’s very good at predicting outcomes. He gives Cordelia a gift of clothes because he knows how she will react and that despite something really “meaning something more” at that time, she’ll love clothes the most. He really gets to know the people he’s around.
Constantly, Angel worries about the demon inside him, Angelus. He can feel him there beneath the surface. He is ashamed of what he used to be, ashamed of what he’s done. Nothing he has done he can take back so he does what he good he can. Something that Angel has always done, is he has always followed through with what he thinks is right. At the time, taking over Wolfram and Hart was right to him. Taking away Connor’s memories was right to him.
Speaking of, Angel is incredibly selfless. When he becomes human in “I Will Remember You” he takes back the day for Buffy. He takes away Connor’s memories in “Home” to give him a better life. Unfortunately, through this, he takes everyone else’s memory of Connor’s existence. He has to live with both of those burdens. Knowing that - at one time - he had happiness in his grasp.
Angel can be a complete dork. This feeds back into his tendency to be a teenager. Little things can really excite and entertain him. Technology is his arch enemy. He hates it. Computers are for everyone else to use. He even has trouble mastering a phone at Wolfram and Heart. Angel has a temper. If you wrong him or his people personally, he will not hesitate to lash out. He’s by no means a pacifist. If he has to, he kicks ass. A part of him definitely likes kicking ass. Angel’s humor can be quite dry when he wants it to be. But, despite being pretty stoic he has a sense of humor - a pretty awesome one if you ask him. He’s a fan of the classics when it comes to movies and music and Barry Manilow is his all time favorite musician.
Angel is a very forgiving person. At first, he may lash out directly (especially with Wesley in the hospital after kidnapping his son) but, over time he forgives. His own son tried to kill him and in the end he gave him a better life. Angel cares about people more than he lets on. A very good way of describing him is the phrase, still waters run deep.
Buffy Summers is Angel’s always and his never. Explaining this further, a part of him will always love her but he knows that they can never be together. Partially, this is because of the curse and partially because he can’t let himself be with her. Without him, she is better off. He truly believes this. Part of this was drilled into him by her mother but a part of him always knew.
Cordelia is Angel’s could have been and probably the woman he loved the deepest in the most unconditional way. His respect for her grew over time as well as his concern for her regarding her visions. Taking care of Connor together and growing closer had been a natural progression and somewhere between sleeping in the same bed with a baby and calling about meeting each other they were in love. It took time but Angel knew in the back of his mind what they were going to say to each other that night. And, even before he knows it was Jasmine who slept with Connor and not Cordelia, he’s seen forgiving her for it in “Awakening.”
Angel will always love Connor. He is his son. No matter what he does, Angel understands Holtz had misled him. Connor was dealt a really rough hand and Angel can’t blame him but when he does act out, Angel won’t hesitate to lay the smack down. He believes in discipline. And because he failed with his own father (he was a disgrace in his eyes) he didn’t want to fail with Connor so he gave him a chance at a real life.
Darla. Angel has never and will never love Darla. That said, his feelings for her are extremely complicated. When all is said and done, he feels something for her. He feels that he can do something when he learns she’s dying and even prepares himself to do so. After her second transformation, he readies himself to kill her and sets both she and Drusilla on fire. He’s extremely sexually attracted to her. She’s starred in several of his dreams. Unfortunately, that will never change. But, he will steal feel something towards her especially since she carried his child.
Nina comes at a time when Angel is at peace with his curse and has discovered that not every sexual escapade needs to be accompanied by deeper feelings. Things were very dark towards the end and he needed an outlet, a sexual outlet and he saw something in Nina that he saw in himself. There’s the idea of her inner beast. All that being said, Angel has a sex drive and he has needs like anybody else, he just stops himself from indulging in them usually and Nina comes at a time when he allows himself that release.
Sexual Preferences/Orientation:
Angelus delights in sex, both consensual and non-consensual. For him, sex is about power. Like Angel, Angelus’ sexual orientation is straight but not rigidly so. Spike and Angel have referred to a time the two of them had sex. And for Angelus, who was known for rape, I wouldn’t say it’s a large stretch to say that he could’ve raped men at all. But, canonically, he is heterosexual and prefers sex with a woman. And though he definitely had a pseudo-relationship with Darla for years, he was not monogamous. Sex is not the be all and end all for Angelus but he certainly enjoys it and might not say no if it comes up - depending on who’s offering - or who he’s hurting/overpowering. Angelus has also taunted someone about defiling their dead body - but a penchant for necrophilia hasn’t actually been confirmed.
Angel is also heterosexual but he regards sex differently. If he is in a relationship, it will be monogamously - not that he’s been in many. Circumstances are also a huge factor. Extreme frustration, apathy and in late season 5, a warm body are reasons he’s had sex. Angel also worries about his curse but over time he realizes that sex with just anyone won’t trigger it. For his curse, it’s about perfect happiness and a lot has to line up for Angel to be perfectly happy as illustrated in “Awakening.” Also, saying Angel and Angelus are in fact one in the same, Angel’s been with men as well but would not choose a man over a woman. He prefers women.
Powers:
- Enhanced strength
- Proficiency in medieval weaponry, and combat in general
- In “game-face” fangs emerge and his face becomes more demonic
- He has an extensive knowledge of both demonic and human history being as he reads a hell of a lot
- Enhanced hearing and sense of smell. [ they can smell fear, arousal, also if someone had sex and what hair color the partner in question had but this is also due to humans having a particular smell to them ]
- Proficiency in the languages, English, Korean, Tibetan, French, Italian, Spanish, German, Greek, Latin, Romanian and Russian
- Profiency in psychological and physical forms of torture
- Photographic memory
- Skilled artist
- The unfortunate ability to burn and char and then turn to dust in the sunlight.
Reason for playing:
While I’ve played Angel as strictly Angel before, Angelus has always fascinated me, a vampire who’d rather plunge the world into hell then deal with real human feelings for Buffy, who snarks first and whose cocky switch is always set to on. Exploring their differences and exploring them more than the series themselves have done is an exciting thought. I love panfandom game, exploring characters outside comfortable surroundings. Both Angel and Angelus adapt in different ways. In Bete Noire, I’d like for Angelus to wreak his own kind of havoc, setting his sights on Angel’s friends and of course, Buffy and hers. Down the line, there could always be the possibly of him being ensouled and playing through the guilt Angel would feel - it could be a real wonderful storyline to play through. I think there’s a good longevity to him - or them. And in all honesty, both Angelus and Angel are fun characters to play. But in very different ways. I'm also intrigued to explore Angel's darker yearnings if that point is reached. This was briefly touched on in Season 2 and following up on that road would be highly interesting.
5. Samples
First-Person:
Angelus
You know, a guy destroys this great evil, de-blots out the sun and he doesn’t even get a thank you. No bottle of wine. You don’t call, you don’t write - I made it more inconvenient for me and yet I don’t really think you’re all that grateful .
And then I get the shaft and realize that Dorothy isn’t in Kansas, anymore that she went over the freakin’ rainbow.
So, now in addition to understanding why there’s no gift basket for saving your precious sun, I also have a few questions. Like, where the hell I am and how much time you would like me to take to kill you. You know, the basics.
Angel
Okay. I’m going to try and keep calm. But, I am not happy. People who kidnap vampires have death wishes. I know something about having a death wish and I just gotta say, it’s not a good road. So, cut your losses, come out in the open and let me help. Or, hide and we’ll do this the hard way. But, I really think you should go with the easy way. I’m nicer that way. I have more patience. Everyone stays happy.
Third-Person:
On the one hand, he felt proud. He was amused for the time being. His idea of a party involved a little more one-on-one time but providing running commentary to the Monday Night Beast ball game wasn’t exactly boring. Faith had actually thought she could make a dent in the block of solid rock. And sure, the sun was back and that was not as good of a development but Angelus could work with it. It was what he was used to. He was a creature of the night after all. But, it really was a bit of a setback. Of course, what did Angelus do but deal with setbacks.
Being reensouled. Setback. Being inside Angel. Setback. Being in a cage. Setback. And yet…
Here he was. Waiting out the sunlight inside a warehouse just thinking up ways to make the newest Slayer squirm, itching to get out there and really take back the night. Two poor souls who stopped by the warehouse lost their lives but what could he say, a growing vampire needed to eat.
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the sun went down.
Hopping down off one of the cargo containers, Angelus didn’t bother being quiet. He grabbed a nearby abandoned pipe and began to toss it from hand to hand, whistling a happy tune. Under different circumstances he could’ve been in a musical. A bloodier, more violent version of a musical.
Outside, he paused. Glancing upward, he realized Faith must’ve taken down his sign.
“I had worked hard on that!” he mocked, tilting his head. “Nobody appreciates art anymore.” But, then he looked closer. The top of the warehouse looked - well, it looked different then the night before. It was smaller. Angelus hadn’t remembered wandering into another building. No, he had been stuck there pretty much all freaking day and he had a bone to pick with the hook throwing slayer. Not to mention with the witch who had gotten her mojo on. Waste of mojo if you asked him. Changing the building, that was rich.
Meandering back inside, he stopped again.
“Wasn’t really planning on taking a stroll through the Twilight Zone …” He slowly took a 360 degree turn. Now the inside was different. Completely. This warehouse had a conveyor belt. And boxes. And an office upstairs. “Faaaaith?” he called out, the first name on his lips. “Wes?” Had they seriously transported him somewhere else?
“Well, what’re they gonna do without Angel, now?”
Third-Person #2:
Some nights, Angelus stayed awake replaying the most vanilla sex he’d been a part of in centuries. Not that he had been in the driver’s seat - more like the trunk - but just taking part in such cliché lovemaking - well, it left a bad taste in his mouth. It practically made him heave knowing how gentle Angel had been with Buffy, how considerate, how loving.
Love clouded fucking.
Making love. What a horrible, disgusting term. The best sex didn’t stem from love or feelings. It came from passion, from desire, from a good old fashioned rutting for the sake of getting off. And the bed? How predictable could he have been? Angelus would’ve taken her right then and there in the rain, against the brick.
Forget unfastening her pants, he would’ve ripped the button right off and yanked Buffy’s pants down. Her neck would’ve been an obstacle but there was no reason that couldn’t have been delayed.
As he ran his fingers down his shaft, Angelus thought about dipping his fingers into her, making her ache her for him. Not Angel. Not, delicate petting but skilled artistry. He thought about removing those fingers and shoving into her until she screamed out his name - or, really, until she screamed. Holding those legs up, ramming into her against that wall, the rain coming down until finally at just the right time, he releases - both in and out of his fantasy.
In his fantasy he takes a bite.
Out of his fantasy, he began to clean himself up. If he ever did have the chance, he’d show Buffy just what she was missing with her precious Angel. What she could have. What could have her. What could fuck her.