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Why was Aziraphale so much more susceptible to the alternate reality than Crowley? -- Duderella
Crowley spent four weeks in the alternate reality and was already starting to lose his grip on his own memories by week two. Aziraphale was there for six weeks before he started to succumb. So arguably Aziraphale was actually less affected than Crowley, but that was because he understood where he was and what was happening to him, whereas Crowley didn't. But the longer Aziraphale spent there, the more influence the world had over him. He spent nearly five months there, eventually becoming convinced by his doctors, his family and his anti-psychotic medication that his life as an angel was all a trauma induced delusion. The turning point was when he realized that he liked the man he had been in that world more than the angel he had been in the real world.
What’s with the mirror? Who sent it to them? Was it a threat or just a glimpse into the multiverse? -- Duderella
I think of the mirror as a gift. A sort of memento or souvenir, to remind them to not let go of the experience. They could look into it and see the people they once were for a time, and to understand that who they were then and who they are now are one and the same.
Was the mirror going to suck them up and drag them back to the hospital? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Who's to say? Probably not, but better to err on the side of caution and destroy it with fire.
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Who was Dr. James and why and how did he send Crowley to an alternate universe? -- Penardim
Okay. So. Dr. James is... someone who knows who and what Crowley and Aziraphale really are, is highly invested in their alternate selves, can create fictional worlds, likes to toy with people's minds, has a baffling sense of humour, and is incredibly smart and good-looking, why not.
How did he send Crowley to the alternate universe? ...He used a mirror.
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Ok, 1) how did the alternate world change/react when Azi was suddenly there instead of Crowley? 2) did that world still exist? 3) is Dr James Jim?? 4) have other beings been caught in that world? 5) did you know the whole story when you started writing it? -- dbacklot99
1) The alternate world was the same with the only exception being that Aziraphale was alive and Crowley had died. All we really know of what Aziraphale experienced there is that his doctor was a different person and it wasn't Betz who visited him in the hospital.
2) ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
3) So, here's where we get into a bit of red herring territory. Because I toyed with the idea early on that Gabriel and Beelzebub were behind the curtain pulling the strings. But I ultimately decided that didn't I didn't like the idea. But since "Jim" and "Betz" are the only characters who show up in that world outside of a memory, it made it seem like they were in on it. So I made the names Dr. James and Dr. Bala to hint at Gabriel and Beelzebub respectively.
4) Yes... in a manner of speaking.
5) Yes and no. I started writing it back when I first saw the artwork by Gleafer, and I had a handful of key scenes that I wrote down. Some scenes -- like the entire dream sequence, for example, and some of the memory sequences -- came to me waaay later and I had to muscle them into the narrative.
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1. Are alternate world Aziraphale and Anthony now alive together? Both dead? Or was it a fictional reality that collapsed without their (and Dr. James’s) presence? -- SacredAndrogyne
In short, that reality doesn't exist without Crowley and Aziraphale in it. It's a little bit like the holodeck in that sense; if no real people are in it, it stops running. The story continues only within the memories that Crowley and Aziraphale carry with them. Even if none of what they remember really happened.
2. Did that reality fork off into two when Aziraphale got stuck on the wrong side, or did their dead/alive status just switch? -- SacredAndrogyne
The story basically reset itself from the point of waking up in the hospital, only instead of Aziraphale, it was Crowley who had died. Of course, it would then be Aziraphale's family who comes to visit him in the hospital. I believe his sister Sara is mentioned at some point.
3. If they still exist outside of A/C’s memories, do human Anthony and/or Aziraphale also get flashes of their demon/angel selves now that everyone’s back “home”? -- SacredAndrogyne
That would make an awesome story!
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Related most specifically to the dream sequence, were you ever a fan of Quantum Leap?? -- PassMeTheEcclesCakes
I don't think I have ever actually seen an episode of Quantum Leap. My Scott Bakula exposure was limited solely to Captain Archer. If the sequence is reminiscent Quantum Leap, I would chalk it up to my subconscious absorption of pop culture references manifesting within my writing. Or it's a coincidence.
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