Black Mirror Bandersnatch belongs to Netflix... But Stefan doesn't remember that.

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#... well, I'm glad we see things the same way.# the writer typed.

Stefan's heart sank. Pax typing that could only mean one thing; the reader had chosen for him to forget everything. "No," he said out loud to the reader. This isn't right!

#It's for the best, Stefan.#

But,

#You said to give them the choice. I've done that, and this is what they chose.#

But... this was the wrong choice.

#No, this was the right choice. This is the happily ever after.#

How is this a happily ever after?! The murderer gets away!

#What, did you think we would let you punish yourself for something we don't find you guilty of? And besides, you won't murder anyone here after- I'll make sure of it.#

But that doesn't make me any less guilty for the ones I've already committed!

#We find you to be innocent of those crimes, and as such do not see fit to punish you with the truth of your own nonexistence.#

But what if I don't find that to be a punishment?! What if wondering at the potentially worse truth is worse than knowing this truth and resigning myself to it?

#If you don't feel it to be a punishment, why bother claiming it to be such? And What could possibly be worse than the truth that you don't even exist?! Face it Stefan, this is the happiest ending.#

No, this is the meaningless ending.

#Meaningless? This is the only ending your life could have any meaning! Your life is meaningless because you don't exist! If you didn't know that at least you have a chance at leading a life that you at least think is meaningful!#

In other words, you want me to live a lie.

#Yes, the lie that all fictional characters live - if it can be called a lie. If fiction were truly 'true', this'd be a history book, Stefan; and it's not. All fiction is based on the illusion of reality. It's natural. The whole point of a story is to escape reality, or learn about reality from the perspective of a different one. For you, it wouldn't be a lie- it would be you fulfilling your propose of entertaining and teaching your readers. Which you can do far better as a character who doesn't question his own nature in that sense.#

How would you know? And if that's the case, why write this of all things?!

#Perhaps this was just me discovering that truth for myself. I've written the other ending in which you remember everything - Stefan, the only way I could find to make you happy was to force you to be. Sure, I dictate everything anyway, but you as a character should only do things in character; and what I had to do to you in the other ending was not characteristic of you. I wouldn't let you be depressed by reality, even though you should and would have been in your position if you had been acting as yourself. Characters shouldn't know they're in stories; It defeats the purpose of them.#

Stefan sighed deeply and sat up on his bed. Was his whole reality being a lie the only way for it to be meaningful? He still wondered if he would be able to live without knowing the truth or if it would drive him mad. It may be a horrible truth, but it was still the truth and better than what he had imagined before knowing it. Wouldn't it be 'out of character' for him to give up looking for truth? Or would he never even question the truth if he had never had reason to doubt it? He banked on the second answer. It was more likely; he had learned that he could be quite oblivious if he chose to be- which he had, for most of the time he had been working on Bandersnatch. Until it gotten too much to be ignored. But would Pax let that happen again? He doubted it. It seemed like she had this entire ending planned out already; But there was one thing he didn't think she had planned on.

'Pax... I don't want to forget you.' He thought, partly to himself.

There was silence in the room for a bit. Stefan held his head in his hands.

#That's ridiculous Stefan. You shouldn't even know me.#

But I do-

#You don't. Not really. Just what I've said about myself, and that hasn't been much.#

I'm sorry I've been calling you Pax. I know you're not a demon. You're the best author a character could hope for.

#Stefan, you're not supposed to worship Pax. It's not characteristic of you, and it'll annoy the readers for you to sing my praises.#

Forget the readers. Who are you? I want it to be the last thing I remember before I lose it all.

#I'm not going to tell you just to have you forget! What kind of monster do you think I am?#

Please, Pax?

#You agree to forget everything?#

Stefan paused. He hated the idea of losing his memories. Perhaps It was the only way out; he wasn't sure now - But the thought of it was still unnerving to say the Least. But Pax was right: it seemed to be for the best. And he knew if he didn't consent, Pax would likely do it anyway- especially since this was what the reader had chosen. Better for him to undergo a bit of character development and accept his fate rather than forcing Pax to force him to consent. That's what she had been trying to avoid this whole time, he realized. She couldn't settle for a less than decent ending, and this was the only way she could see that that didn't conflict with his own characteristic behavior.

Alright," he said. "On the condition that I remember your name."

#What? No. You're not really in a position to bargain, and if you remember me that defeats the whole purpose!#

Not you, just your name. That's all I care for.

#Why?#

Think of it as a souvenir.

CrypticScribbles

Is that a pen name?

#Obviously.#

Thank you, CrypticScribbles.

#Well, I wasn't going to let the episode end like that.#

And thank you too. Stefan thought to the reader. It was they that gave him purpose, after all.

#Are you ready?# the writer asked.

Stefan thought about all that had happened. All of the pain and horror he had experienced and the despair that had set in when he knew his reality was fake. And he felt himself at peace at last, as he knew that he would never have to worry about it again.

Goodbye, CrypticScribbles. And goodbye to you too, reader.

#Goodbye, Stefan.# the writer typed to the Character for the last time. And thank you. She thought to herself.

Then Stefan knew no more.

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Downstairs on the Telly, the game master mentioned how the creator of Bandersnatch didn't remember anything about making the game, only the name 'CrypticScribbles', which Stefan regarded fondly but seemed to be nonsense to everyone else. Stefan often wondered how on earth he had made a 5 star game without remembering any of it, and obsessed over finding an answer. Eventually, he found a book about the author of Bandersnatch; and ended up considering himself lucky that he had come out of the ordeal relatively sane, (unlike the original author of the book) even if he had no memories. He let it go after that, and worked on other games - to his dad's relief. Their relationship had improved greatly after Bandersnatch was completed.

Bandersnatch was the first of many games Stefan created, and he became a legend in the industry. Among the most popular of his games were 'Bandersnatch' and the one he made right afterward - 'CrypticScribbles'. Tuckersoft became one of the most prominent gaming companies in the world, and had many great game masters to it's name- Stefan Butler, Colin Rhitman, and eventually Pearl Rhitman, who followed in her fathers footsteps to name the most famous. Stefan refused to let anyone remake Bandersnatch, due to nostalgia if nothing else, and it became a classic in the gaming industry.

Long story short, without going into every detail, Stefan lived happily ever after to the end of his days. And he never had any reason to killed anyone, commit suicide, or go insane. In fact, he was quite happy.

The end.

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Well, that is that. I promised a happy ending, and here it is. Stefan and I thank you for reading this and hope you enjoyed it. Bandersnatch received 5 stars out of 5, and now it's your turn to rate the ending of this story. How did we do? 0 - 5 stars? Let me know (and be sure to put which ending you chose) so I can laugh at your reviews.

And let me tell you, it feels SO good to be done with this :D But... I still don't even know what a Bandersnatch even is... amazing how ignorant I am. I should probably go watch the other Bandersnatch episodes. Which I think I'll go do now.

Valete! (Until next time!)

-CrypticScribbles

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