Ask Summer Detention Club

[Ailis Drast]

Ailis was right in the middle of stuffing a bottle of allergy medicine into her backpack from the medicine cabinet when she heard a voice from the hall.

Her face had a nerf in the headlight kinda look on it as she turned to see Altair standing there. She wasn't about to admit she was already collecting ingredients for a little kitchen sink chemistry later. "Uhhh... Chips." She lied, glancing around and spotting a bag of chips on the counter. A mix of panic and shame filled her chest for a moment before she stuffed it down.

Ailis slung her backpack over her shoulder and grabbed the bag of chips off the counter, popping it open and grabbing one out before offering the opening to Altair. She crunched on the chip for a moment, swallowing. Waiting for a moment to see whether he believed her or not.

"I'm bored, wanna get outta here and hit that arcade? I heard they just got the newest expansion to Mando Strike" She said. Sitting around at a dealers house wasn't exactly her idea of a good time and she hoped doing something a little more exciting would distract her from that little whisper.

@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

Altair stared at her for a moment, his face making it abundantly clear that he didn’t believe a word of what she was saying. He silently grabbed a few chips and munched on them, never taking his eyes off her. After he snacked, he walked off to use the refresher, emerging a few moments later. Altair gave a jut of his chin to leave the apartment.

While they were on their way to the arcade, Altair felt a lot calmer. It was only a slight reprieve from the intense feelings he had earlier, and the anxiety was muted, but it was always there in the back of his mind.

“So what’s your deal?” He asked, “Gotta be more to your story than party girl,” Altair said as the arcade began to loom in front of them.

@Arcangel

 

[Ailis Drast]

It was pretty obvious he didn't believe her, no matter how much she wanted him to. He also didn't question her again, instead heading off to do whatever he was gonna do. Ailis headed back to the main room to see her dealer pouting on the couch.

"You uhhh... Might need to replace a few kitchen items." She said before flipping him a credit chit that should be enough to cover what she had... Borrowed.

By then Altair returned and they walked in silence to the arcade. He seemed a lot less on edge. Maybe the herb did help, that edge was still there, the clock ticking, but it didn't seem quite so panic inducing.

Ailis cocked her head and raised an eyebrow at Altair as he asked her what her deal was. "Do I have to be?" She asked in response to being more than a party girl. At least at a party, with her head in the clouds, she didn't have to think. Have to stress. Have to feel all the pressures of existence.

She stopped short of the arcade, looking at Altair. What was her deal? That was a whole bundle of packages to unwrap. "You sure you wanna know?" She asked, a skeptical look on her face. Most people didn't usually care about what her deal was. Usually all they cared about was what they could get from her. "It's... A lot. I'm a fucking mess dude." She finished, staring at him.

@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

Altair noticed she stopped walking when he asked his question. He stopped as well, just a few steps ahead of her. He spun on his heel to face her, tilting his head and eyeing her skeptically as she spoke, “Naw, you can be whatever you want,” He reaffirmed, giving her that same grin that came so naturally to him. However, he was surprised by what she said next, the smile slowly fading from his face. Altair looked away for a moment. One of his hands came up to run along the length of one of his horns, a habit he displayed when he fidgeted.

“Yea well I took some shit at that party that’ll strip me of the Force that has me tweakin’,” He blurted out with his gaze fixed in the other direction. He finally looked at her, “As far as messes go, pretty sure I’m bottom of the barrel. You can only go up from me, boss,” He managed another smile, this one not quite reaching his eyes. His tone was hollow and empty, betraying slivers of how devastated he was.

“But this ain’ no contest,” He said, “I ain’t finna pry if you don’t wanna say shit,” Altair shrugged before he began to walk again.

@Arcangel

 

[Ailis Drast]

Ailis was a bit surprised when Altair spun on his heel and answered, affirming that she could in fact, be whatever she wanted. Even if that was just the dumb party girl who... Did all the things she did.

His admition shocked her even more. Ailis jaw nearly dropped. A drug that could strip you of the force. Ailis could see the devil's shadow in his eyes, and in the way he had been that day. Twitching and itching. She hadn't even noticed she'd been so wrapped up in her own bullshit.

"...Damn." Ailis said, looking away for a moment in guilt. He was already going through it and she had tried to drag him into her own personal hell. A hazy memory popped up in her head, the flash of a glowing purple vial that she caught in her hands, the slide of credits across a bar. She shivered. She had no idea if she had taken any or not.

"No it's not a contest, but if it was, I feel like I'm in close second." A shadow fell over her face as she looked at the ground, scuffing her shoe back and forth anxiously.

And then he was walking away again.

"Hey wait. Wanna grab a quick smoke before we go in?" She said as she caught back up to him and touched his arm lightly. "Maybe... Talk about things?" She wasn't sure if it was the herb mellowing her out or the feeling of shared experience that inspired her to reach out. Whether it was out of concern, or a selfish desire to vent... She couldn't really say.

@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

He almost winced as he saw that look on her face. Pity. It was exactly what he dreaded when he told people about this. However, it didn’t feel as shitty from her because he saw the self loathing when she spoke about Crude. In many ways she was in the same boat, even if Crude wouldn’t sever her Force connection. He was already walking away, deep in his thoughts, when she stopped him again.

“You really don’t like when I walk away from you,” Altair teased with a sheepish grin, observing the pattern a few times now. His gaze flicked down to where she had touched his arm, though he didn’t withdraw from it.

“Only if it involves some food,” He countered, “Those chips were fucking stale,” The downside of the herbs was that it left him ravenously hungry. Combined with the withdrawals he wanted nothing more than to bash some food. Altair hummed quietly to himself as they walked. He pointed to a sketchy, old diner near the arcade that looked largely empty.

Altair led the way in, walking over to plop down at a booth in the corner. The place allowed for smoking, and there was no one but droids around. He ordered himself a chocolate shake before turning to look at Ailis.

“So? How’d you end up here?” He asked quietly, not specifying exactly what he meant by ‘here’.

@Arcangel

 

[Ailis Drast]

Ailis felt a little pitter patter in her chest as the devilish boy grinned at her, saying what he said. She brushed it off. Telling herself it wasn't the time for anything like that.

"I'm usually the one who does the walking away." She grinned a little back before following him to find some munchies. She hadn't even realized she was hungry but now she was starving. She remained lost in thought until they got to the diner and took their seats.

"Huh... Oh." She returned her attention to the real world, having spaced off. She pulled a pack of cigarettes and a lighter out of a pocket. She pulled a cig out and put it between her lips, sliding the pack over to Altair as she lit up. She took a smooth inhale, exhaling completely before she finally started talking.

"Fuck I don't even know where to begin. You ever been to Coruscant?" She started, taking a break for a moment to tell the droid that she was having what he was having before continuing. "I started synthesizing medicine when I was twelve. To treat a... Uhh... Condition that I have." She stumbled over that one, was it really that hard to just say it?

"I started making Crude around, I don't know, fourteen. Selling it. My family needed the money." She got a faraway look as she brought up those intact memories, her parents spice addictions that had impoverished them. Her own following in their footsteps. "I started dipping into my own supply a year later... And now we're here." She finished somberly. There was a lot that she left out, but for an introduction it was good enough. "What about you? What's your story?

@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

Altair grinned at her as she professed she usually was the one that walked away, “Walk?” He quipped back, “Or run,” He could relate to it quite a bit. In many senses he did that to get away from the farm, and he wandered all over the place. Part of it was his tiefling background, but a lot of it was his personality. Whether from people or problems, going the opposite direction was always simpler option.

Altair politely declined the cigs, not really a smoker in that regard. He nodded when she asked if he had been to Coruscant. He had performed there several times during some of the annual festivals. Street performances yielded him quite a bit of cash there. He ordered an assortment of nachos and fries, along with chicken tenders to share. Altair’s brows rose after she finished speaking.

“You made it?” He asked, fascination seeping into his tone. He didn’t pry about her condition, as it was none of his business, “You’ve gotta be mega smart to do that shit. I bet you are top of the class for chem,” He flashed a grin, genuinely impressed. Altair ate a few fries before he spoke again, “If you wanna make bank off it, can’t dip into your own shit. Biggest mistake dealers make, especially with the harder shit. You’ll blaze through your supply,” He had seen it happen time and time again. While he didn’t deal, he always told himself he would find ways to keep himself from touching the merch. Much easier said than done...

“I’m a Matukai from Bandomeer. Grew up on a farm, got nine siblings,” He said with a smile, “I got into some of this shit because honestly there’s nothin’ to do out there. I joined the Sith when they took over Bandomeer so I’m new to all this Dark Side shit,” He waved his hands around dramatically, “I just..gotta figure out if I like who I’m becoming,” He thought for a moment, thinking back to when he butchered civilians that refused to listen to him in that obscure town with his Master.

“You dig who you are?” He asked out of the blue before realizing it was probably too heavy of a question. Maybe it was the herbs talking.

@Arcangel

 

[Ailis Drast]

Ailis couldn't help but smile a little as Altair started to gush over how smart she must be. She knew she was smart, but it was nice to hear it from someone else. "I am smart." She asserted, not bragging, Maybe a little. "I was top of my class, even with all of my bullshit... Or at least I was until I came here." She'd never struggled with school before. Struggled with going to school regularly, sometimes, sure. But she did all her work and passed all her tests so they had never bothered her much about it.

The advice to not dip into her own shit was, well. "About three years too late on that one dude." She laughed grimly. There was no pride there and a shadow fell over Ailis face for a moment. She shook it off when the milkshakes came and started to drink while listening as Altair talked about home.

"Nine?" Ailis coughed in the middle of sucking on her straw. Nine siblings. She was shocked. "On a farm. Outside? With like animals and plants and stuff?" She asked, frankly amazed. Back home she could go months, even years, without seeing the natural sun. "I had one brother. He ran out on me around... Eight or nine. I used to hate him for it, but the older I got the more I understood..." She got a faraway look as she talked about those memories.

Did she dig who she was.

"No... hahaha I fucking hate myself." She tried to laugh but ended with a small sniffle as she wiped a bit of moisture away from her eye. Stupid emotions. "I like who I am.. most days. Its better than the alternative." She started, not really sure what she meant. "But... I hurt everyone. Everyone who I get close to..." The tears started coming down her face then, silently, as she continued. "I can't get away from it and, and... and I do... these... these awful things. Selfish things. I hurt people." She buried her forehead in her hands, mussing her hair and hiding her face, cigarette smoking idly in her hand.

"And I can't stop. Its all I can think about." She admitted as she looked back at him. She had been thinking about it earlier, and even talking about it now her attention tugged towards the backpack sitting next to her and the ingredients in it. Looking away from the backpack, she returned her attention to Altair. She hadn't even meant to look away.

@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

Altair chuckled as she mentioned being top of her class, “You’re waaaay too smart for me,” He grinned as he popped in a few more fries. His sister Imani was similar, always top of her class and the smartest in the family. He fondly thought of her, deciding he would facetime her later. But he quickly changed his mind, knowing her perceptive nature meant she would pick up on his gaunt appearance.

The tiefling began to laugh more at her incredulous reaction to his farm life, “Yeah, nine. We have banthas, porgs and a bunch of other stuff,” He beamed, “I can grow a mean garden,” Altair said smugly, actually proud of that. He quietly continued to eat as she spoke, surprised at her reaction to his question. He had expected her to clamp up, but she actually was far more forthcoming than expected. Altair was quiet for a long moment, but he didn’t look away from her.

“Then just own who you are,” He shrugged vaguely, “If you wanna be selfish, be fuckin’ selfish. Tell people that’s who you are, don’t apologize and if they Kichapu face after your sudden but inevitable peace out, that’s on them,” Altair drank more of his shake, “You ain’t no old lady, don’t gotta have your shit figured out, don’t owe shit to the galaxy. Just have fun and be you, man. But own it either way.”

He flashed her a grin, “Don’t lose the giggles though, I dig it.”

@Arcangel

 

[Ailis Drast]

Ailis waited for the inevitable judgement. The revelation of her struggles, she always imagined how people might react. They would see her as a monster. A hollow shell of a human being driven by the devil on her shoulder.

Instead he just stared.

Ailis wiped her face clean as he started to speak and she tried to process his words. It hit her, and it all kinda... made sense, in a cynical way. "So, I should just say... Fuck 'em'?" She asked, waving her hand like she was shooing someone away, waving smoke. A scowl on her tearstained face. "I should just not care if I hurt people, use them, drop them without a care." She kinda laugh-scoffed, shaking her head. She had always wanted to be a good person.

"How very Sith of you." She smiled a little grimly, but her eyes smiled too. She was there to be... well to be a Sith, after all. Sith and good person didn't seem like it would get along all the time.

"Alright. Fuck 'em" She laughed lightly as she leaned back, waving her hand with dramatic flare before bringing the cigarette back to her mouth, the ember burning brightly as she inhaled. "The wise words of Altair..." She didn't know his last name, so she couldn't quote him properly. She exhaled smoke. "I don't know dude. I don't like hurting people." Not while she was sober. "I want to care about them, I just can't... care about them either. Like I'm broken. Here I am telling you my life story and I'll probably forget your name by next week." At least she had that part of being a Sith down. Or was the attachments a Jedi thing?

Ailis turned and lowered her head slightly in response to his comment about her giggles, eyeing him. "Is that a pickup line?" She asked with a small laugh before taking another drag.

@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

Altair began to laugh as she expressed counter judgment on his perspective, and he found that all the more amusing. He finished up the fries and nibbled on some of the nachos, deciding that he absolutely loved this shitty diner.

“Look man, if you’re up front about what you’re like, you’re bein’ honest, right? You meet someone and you say ‘yo I ain’t trynna make this a thing, ya' mean?’ and lay it down for people,” He shrugged, “It’s only shitty if you’re putting up a front and not being honest,” A pang shot through his chest. Wasn’t he doing just that to Vahliri? Oh well, it was much easier to offer advice than it was to follow his own, “I’m sayin’ you got your entire life to figure out how to be a good girl. Why you gotta do that right now?” He leaned back in his seat, staring up at the ceiling lights for a moment. He fully intended to meet up with Aadya again, and he fully intended to accept whatever superficial bullshit that was going to be. It sounded easier than anything more complicated than that.

Altair tilted his head as he looked at her again, giving her a half grin, “You won’t forget my name,” He stated flatly, a fiery glint to his eye. He didn’t elaborate beyond that, the grin widening as he heard her giggle again, followed by her question. Altair casually reached a hand up to brush through strands of his hair, keeping his head slightly cocked as he looked at her.

“You want it to be one?”

@Arcangel

 

[Ailis Drast]

Ailis listened as Altair laid out his points about honesty and what was and wasn't shitty. It kinda made sense, but it still felt like hurting people was shitty even if you warned them. "So... What do I do? Do I say? 'Hi I'm Ailis and I want to be friends, lovers, etc., but I'm also an addict and an awful person who will hurt you, lie to you, cheat on you, steal from you, whatever. Wanna makeout?" She shook her head laughing. "Because as far as pickup lines go that would be the worst.

She thought about his second comment, that she didn't have to be a good girl yet, that she had time to figure it out "Well I sure as hell haven't figured it out yet." She said. Maybe one day she would... But she'd probably accidentally walk in front of a speeder high on crude before that happened.

"Promise?" She asked with a sly tone as he assured her that she wouldn't forget his name. Her eyes watched him as he reacted to her half joking question, a bit of fire in his eyes. Did she want it to be one? Fuck. She'd gone and done it again. First candid conversation she had in days and she was already thrill seeking.

"Tell me about your garden?" She asked, sidestepping the question completely. She was far too sober for this and she glanced to the side for a moment before focusing her attention back on Altair, an image of him shirtless and digging in the dirt of a garden flashing across her mind.

@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

Altair shrugged, “Yeah, that’s pretty much what you say. You’d be surprised at how often people appreciate someone being up front instead of dicking them around,” He definitely had enough siblings go through their bullshit to learn that being blunt and yourself was the best policy to live by. Now, he himself often was terrible at it, but it didn’t mean Ailis couldn’t do it.

The tiefling caught her sidestepping his question, and he completely missed the underlying implications of that. He took it at face value, deciding he wouldn’t crack that door open again. The question about the garden brought a light to his eyes, “Oh I can grow all kinds of fruits and veggies,” He said, excitement bleeding into his tone, “We grow jogan fruit, meiloorun, so many different kinds of root vegetables,” Altair went off into a long rant about different seasons and the different kinds of crops that yielded, “And we sell our produce in the town market. Every year there’s a competition for the biggest melons, and my brother wins almost every year!” He beamed with pride, “I’ve won a few times for my fruit pies too,” Altair said with a smile, his face growing hot. It wasn’t exactly a ‘cool’ thing to brag about, but he did make a mean pie.

“I miss it sometimes,” He said quietly, “I don’t spend much time outdoors on ‘Kaas. It’s just the dorms and campus. A lot of city shit. I miss the open air and countryside,” Altair looked through the window, seeing the concrete jungle around them even now. After a few moments, he looked back at Ailis.

“Shit sorry, I been rambling,” He muttered sheepishly, “You got any shit you do for fun?”

@Arcangel

 

[Ailis Drast]

Ailis thought about Altair's words for a long hard moment. What would it be like to just be up front and not try to pretend to be the person she wanted everyone to see. That she thought they expected to see. She wasn't quite sure where she had come up with the expectations that she put on herself but she did it all the same. "I guess I could give it a try."

Ailis was glad that Altair didn't press, wasn't sure if she was ready to crack open that egg to see what came out. Probably something just as rotten and painful as always. Instead she sat there with her chin on the back of her hand listening to him ramble about fruits and vegetables, seasons and farm yields. Most of the concepts were foreign to her but she could tell there was enough to it to know it took intelligence to successfully run a farm.

"I bet you make a mean pie." She giggled as he bragged, his face red. It was cute how animated he got when he got to talking about something he was passionate about. He then went on to lament about how different the acadamy on Dromund Kaas was. It all sounded like everything she had ever experienced her whole life.

"Don't apologize." She brushed his muttering off. "Sometimes its nice to just listen to someone talk. The way you speak about it almost makes me want to visit a farm one day." To be somewhere other than an urban cityscape felt like such a faraway thing. She'd never gotten far from her durasteel and permacrete jungle.

"What do I do for fun?" She looked away for a moment, thinking. "Well, besides going out to clubs every weekend to get high and make bad decisions I'm a bit boring. I study a lot, especially lately. Learning can be fun in its own way. Video games are a nice de-stresser."

She stopped for a moment and looked at him again, with a sly smile. "Cute boys are probably near the top of the list." She said before taking a final drag off her cigarette and putting it out in an ashtray. "I grew up in a city like this one, except worse. You'd think there would be a lot to do, but mostly its just shopping, partying, racing, gambling and drugs. Same as any place I suppose. I'm kind of an adrenaline junky though, anything to get my heart racing." Looking back at it all, her so far short life seemed pretty empty.

"So what do farm boys do for fun besides digging in the dirt and baking pies?" She asked with curiosity in her voice. Was it more of the same, or was there some secret to life outside of the city. "I'm always interested in trying new things."

@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

Altair finished up his meal as she spoke, listening to every word. He found it easy to talk to her, and that in turn held his attention. He flashed her a grin when she mentioned cute boys, though he said nothing about it. He certainly had his fair share of parties and going out to clubs. And he couldn’t deny hot girls topped the list for him, though most of them thought he looked like a freak. Every now and then he came across women that came across interested but it was only because he was an exotic race.

“We make moonshine and drink till we totally black out,” He shrugged, “Go racing in farming speeders. I love getting piercings," He pointed to the multitude of piercings along his ears, and he also stuck his tongue out a bit to show the row of studs lining up the length of it, "I guess I also get into trouble for fun,” Altair grinned again, “I got sent on a Code Red mission because I headbutted a combat instructor,” She would recognize Code Red as suicidal missions acolytes from the academies were sent on because they committed a serious offense. Only half of the acolytes sent came back from it and Altair and Cairo barely managed. Cairo had lost a hand.

“Later tonight I planned on taking a moonlit dip in the Droid Engineering teacher’s pool,” There was that glint in his eye again, and it was clear he was dead serious. He had mapped out exactly where the man lived and Altair would sneak onto his property just to have a swim. Just ‘cause.

“I’m a pretty terrible influence,” He admitted. He and Cairo always got into deep shit and Wildfire was their biggest pile of shit yet.

@Arcangel

 

[Ailis Drast]

Ailis had barely touched the food, nibbling on a few fries here, a few bites of chicken tenders there. She had drained her milkshake completely though. "Now you're making farmlife sound like a lot of fun." She leaned in a bit as he talked about their dangerous escapades. It really was the same everywhere.

Ailis raised an eyebrow and leaned back when he stuck his tongue out, gaining a little distance to try to make out how many of the studs liked his tongue. Damn... I should get one of those." She muttered as she thought about how cool that would be. Her eyes opened wide when he said he was sent on a Code Red. She had heard only half the people who went on Code Red missions lived. One guy had even come back missing a hand.

"And you survived? Damn. You must be pretty good." She thought back to when she had whirled him around and slammed him against the wall. She had nearly punched him.

He probably could have destroyed her if he wanted to.

He moved on to his plans for the evening and Ailis looked at him with a glimmer in her eye. "Is this an invitation?" She asked, smiling. Sneaking onto the teachers property. Moonlit dip with someone. It was the right amount of dangerous to fun ratio. She laughed when he admitted he was a bad influence. "No. I'm the bad influence. You're the one who dumped my drugs." She said, sticking a tongue out at him.

@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

“I ain’t good,” Altair chuckled as she spoke about his Code Red experience, “I got lucky and barely survived. That shit ain’t a joke. But would I headbutt that instructor again? You bet ya ass,” He said confidently. He reflected back to that day, it was the first day he met Cairo. He began with throwing a punch at the boy that would become his best friend. The day felt like centuries ago now.

The tiefling looked back at Ailis, shrugging, “Imma do it regardless of whether you come or not, so it’s up to you, boss,” He said as he finished up his milkshake. Altair knew she wasn’t going to drop the topic of him dumping her drugs, and he couldn’t blame her. If he saw someone dumping out a vial of Wildfire he would probably jump them now.

“Maybe we’re two shitty peas in a pod then,” He smiled before he looked down at his datapad, “You still wanna go to the arcade or do somethin’ else?” He still had a few hours to kill before it was dark for him to begin his invasion operation on the teacher’s backyard.

@Arcangel

 

[Ailis Drast]

Ailis got quiet for a moment when Altair spoke of his Code Red experience. He had nearly died. And that was just for hitting an instructor...

Ailis realized she was gonna have to watch her step. There was no way that she would survive a Code Red.

She pouted her lip just a little bit when Altair refused to play along and invite her. And there he went calling her boss again. "Well if I'm the boss, I could just order you to take me along." She laughed but there was a mean glimmer in her eye that suggested she might just do that. "I'll go. It sounds like it could be fun." She said before pulling enough credits out to pay for what they had eaten.

Ailis cocked her head and looked at Altair funny for a moment. "What's a pea?" She asked. She assumed it meant they were similar but she felt she was missing the context of the saying. Tapping a finger on her lip for a moment when he asked what she wanted to do, she thought about it for a moment.

"I thiiiink... I'm going to go get my tongue pierced." She decided, standing up to leave. She started to walk out, not waiting for Altair to get up. Slinging her backpack over her shoulder, she stopped at the exit to the small diner and looked at him over her shoulder.

"You can come, if you want to... Or not." She said over her shoulder, imitating Altair's earlier words. "It's up to you." She finished, giving him a wink and a grin before stepping out of the diner.

@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

Altair chuckled quietly, “I don’t mind being ordered around,” He blurted out before he could stop himself. He quickly cleared his throat, thankful she had moved on from there. The fact that she didn’t know what a pea was actually got him to start laughing. He couldn’t keep it together, bursting into full laughter as he saw the look on her face as she asked the question dead serious.

“You’re a trip,” He chuckled as he actually pulled up pictures of peas and peapods on his datapad to show her, explaining in great detail what the saying meant and how it applied. Altair put the datapad away, still reeling from the laugh. He needed that.

His brows rose when she declared she would get her tongue pierced, “For real?” He asked incredulously. It wasn’t something he had seen anyone whimsically decide unless they were horribly inebriated, and she certainly was not. Altair rose to his feet as well, dropping a few credits for his half. He wasn’t exactly made of money to cover them both, and he already paid for the herbs.

“Better keep your mouth closed in the pool then,” He said with a grin as he followed her out, “And I'm definitely coming along to see if you wimp out or not,” He said smugly as they walked, “Did mine inspire you that much?” Altair teased, still surprised by her abrupt decision.

@Arcangel