Episode 15: Bonus Episode: “The IOU Ledger – Volume 1 & Volume 2 ”
Host: Gilbreth Bernardus
Style: One-part advice, two-parts bragging, three-parts made-up
Setting: Echoey room, fire popping in the hearth, voice low and theatrical; flame crackles, soft footsteps pacing.
“Most folks keep ledgers to track coin.
I keep mine to track shame.
Favors, broken promises, debts paid late… or never.
This little book’s full of IOUs I don’t always remember writing.
But every one of them?
It meant something when I wrote it.”
Gilbreth exhales like he’s about to confess or con. Maybe both.
Gilbreth:
“Most folks keep ledgers to track coin.
I keep mine to track shame.
Favors, broken promises, debts paid late… or never.
This little book’s full of IOUs I don’t always remember writing.
But every one of them?
It meant something when I wrote it.”
📓 Page 1: “To Meethus — 1 Broken Sword and a Conversation I Owe You”
“I told you the sword shattered in battle.
It didn’t. I sold the hilt for wine.
You said nothing. Just looked at me like someone trying not to be disappointed.
I’ll bring you the conversation soon.
I’ve been practicing honesty.”
📓 Page 14: “To the Halfling Who Gave Me a Cloak in the Rain”
“You didn’t ask for anything. Just said,
‘You look like someone who doesn’t know how to be warm.’I said thanks. Then I pawned the cloak.
I owe you something warmer than gold.
Maybe a story.
Maybe myself.”
📓 Page 22: “To Breui Anne Ale — A Morning I Was Too Afraid to Stay For”
“You were humming. I was pretending to sleep.
I left before you opened your eyes.
I don’t know if you noticed.
But I owe you a sunrise, and maybe… an answer.”
📓 Page 37: “To Whisperjack (The Real One)”
“I owe you a name.
One I wore like a mask.
One you earned with blood and I borrowed for stories.
You didn’t kill me.
I owe you a tale written in your name — one you can be proud of.”
📓 Page 52: “To the Goat (Yes, You)”
“You knew.
You saw me lie about the map, the prize, the noble title.
And you bit the right person anyway.
I owe you apples. And freedom.”
Gilbreth (closing the book):
“I can’t pay them all back.
But I carry them.That has to count for something.”
🎶 “Half-truths, whole drinks — and IOUs I never stopped owing.” 🎶
Light scribbling. Wind at the windows. Gilbreth speaks quietly, almost like he’s afraid someone might actually hear these.
Gilbreth:
“Welcome back, fellow debtors of the soul.
Tonight we’re flipping through the second half of my ledger — where the ink’s smudged, the names are blurrier, and the regrets…
well, they’re realer than I’d like.”
📓 Page 59: “To the Boy I Taught to Cheat at Dice”
“You were good. Too good.
I showed you the false roll because I thought it’d keep you alive.
You used it to win back your sister’s inheritance.
I owe you faith. And a clean lesson.”
📓 Page 71: “To the Noblewoman Who Asked Me to Stay the Night”
“You didn’t want lies. You didn’t want promises.
Just warmth.
I said I’d stay until dawn.
I stayed until your dreams started.
I owe you a goodbye.”
📓 Page 84: “To Myself (When I Was Younger)”
“I said you’d make it.
I said if you just kept talking, kept laughing, kept moving — no one would notice you were scared.
You’re still moving.
Still scared.
I owe you a rest.”
📓 Page 91: “To the Stranger Who Cried in My Arms, Thinking I Was Someone Else”
“I never corrected you.
Just held you while you shook.
You whispered a name I didn’t recognize —
and said you were sorry.I said I forgave you.
I owe you the truth.
But I think you needed a lie more.”
📓 Page 100: “To the Future Me — If You’re Still Reading This”
“You probably still owe everyone.
You probably still haven’t paid any of this back.
But if you’re still writing,
if you’re still trying —maybe that’s enough for now.”
Gilbreth (closing the ledger, softer than ever):
“It’s not about settling the debt.It’s about remembering who I borrowed the light from…
even if it was just for one night.”
🎶 “Half-truths, whole drinks — and the weight of borrowed names.” 🎶