Kalfu woke the following day in the arms of the zebra friend who had come to him when he needed someone the most. His eyes focus on her sleeping face before he gently removes her arms from him. Without waking her, he slides out of his bed quietly and goes to his bathroom. He stands in front of his mirror before leaning down and splashing cold water on his face before leaning against the counter as he looks at his reflection…or what seems to be a lack thereof. He blinked a few times before rubbing his eyes. Sure enough, his reflection was gone. "What the actual fuck..?" he asked himself as he wondered why his reflection had just vanished all of a sudden.

He quickly looked down at his feet, ensuring his shadow was still in place. Thankfully, that hadn't disappeared on him..yet. There is a saying that in some cultures, gods, and goddesses who take the physical form in a mortal realm cast no shadow or reflection the greater their power is. But surely that can't be the case for Kalfu, right? He doesn't feel any more powerful than ever since he got here. Maybe later, he would test this theory to ensure everything was in order.

As he was deep in thought, he suddenly felt the gentle embrace of Zecora approaching him from behind." Are you alright, Kalfu….? You had me quite worried last night. WHat had made you so upset?" she asked as she rested her chin atop his head in a comforting manner as she firmly squeezed him. Kalfu lifted one of his hands to rest upon one of her arms before squeezing it, careful not to touch one of the bandaged-up areas from the minor burns she received. "Just…horrible memories of the past rearing their ugly faces after a long time. Thank you…for coming when you did," he said before gently pulling away from her.

She didn't want to let him go but understood why he pulled away. "I don't know what compelled me to come see you. But this nagging feeling in my chest said I needed to see you quickly. And it wouldn't dissipate. I remembered where you said your home was and followed the instructions you had told me to get here. I saw the strange glow coming from your windows, and that is when I found you in that…state.".

Kalfu nodded and passed Zecora, lightly placing a hand on her upper arm as he did. "Thank you for also staying the night to comfort me. It was lovely of you. Let me fix something good for breakfast to make it up to you. I have wanted to share a meal with someone for quite some time anyway. And now, this is the perfect opportunity to do so." he said as he made his way to the kitchen, getting the food prepped and ready to be made. He was going to treat her to something special. Maybe a good old homestyle cajun breakfast.

After breakfast and a small talk, Zecora gave Kalfu a tight hug and nuzzle before leaving him for the day to go and tend to her own business. After which, Kalfu gets ready for the day before making his way out of the swamp and into Ponyville once more to go and buy himself some groceries. After all, he had to restock his pantry as he went a little overboard in making Zecora breakfast. But, she was worth the effort, to be sure. And he was happy to do it for her.

As he ventured closer to the town, he couldn't help but catch the smell of burning wood and straw. He lifts his head to notice a pillar of smoke rising from within the town's inner parts. With a light hop, he lifted into the air and took to the air before flying towards the smoke, praying that he wasn't too late to help. Who knows how many lives could be in danger if he didn't act as quickly as he could? The only thing that bothered him was why he suddenly cared.

The crowd gathered around the large burning building, which appeared to be an orphanage. This was a home for children who no longer had parents for one reason or another. And now it was being destroyed by a raging inferno. As Kalfu approached the fire, he looked down from the air to see that ponies were escaping from the burning building. However, he was also hearing from the panicked shouts of those who made it out that some foals were still trapped inside. Without hesitating, Kalfu flew right into the inferno and through the flames.

The fire inside the building was even more brutal than it was out in the open. A group of foals huddled up in the corner, holding one another, were coughing, choking on the smoke, and trying to stay as low as they could and away from the fire. As they gazed towards the wall of flames that seemed only to get bigger and closer, Kalfu walked through it like it was nothing. The flames flicked and licked against his form, making him look even more menacing and monstrous than he had already done. This caused the foal to let out cries of terror as tears poured down their cheeks as they pushed themselves closer to the wall as they had nowhere to go.

"Calm down! I know you are scared! But I am going to get you all out of here!" he said as he opened up a dark portal before reaching out to the foals." Come on, jump through one at a time! They are waiting for you outside!" he shouted as he motioned for them to jump through. They looked up at him hesitantly and with great fear in their eyes. Was he trying to help them? They weren't too sure about it. "You have to trust me on this, guys! I'd rather not see all of you die here today. You are too damn young to lose your lives!".

They hesitated for a moment longer, which soon caused the ceiling to collapse above them. Just as it was about to fall on top of them fully, a pair of giant skeletal arms held the burning wooden beams up as Kalfu reached out his hand to them. "Come on! I need you all to be brave! I know you are scared, but it will be okay, I promise!" he said before finally seeing one of them slowly stand up and approach him. He placed a hand upon the foal's back before gently guiding them into the portal. "There you go, everyone else follow!" he said as he ensured that every single one of them made it through.

And just in time, too. As the last foal passes, the whole building suddenly gives way before fully collapsing on top of Kalfu. "Fuck!" was the last thing he shouted before the fire engulfed him. "Mr. Spooky!" cried out the foals he had saved as they watched in terror as the building fell apart on their savior. All was quiet for a moment before they noticed a few of the burning beams moving before they flew into the air, those same skeletal arms throwing the beams out of the way as Kalfu climbed out of the inferno looking rather….unbothered it seemed, simply dusting the ash and fire off his clothing before making his way over to the foals with a smile.

The foal suddenly let out a ruckus cheer as they watched their hero emerge from the rubble unscathed before crowding around him, reaching out and grabbing at the hem of his coat and hugging around his waist in gratitude, happy to see him unharmed. "You guys okay?" he asked, crouching down to their level and touching their heads. "Yes, Mr. Spooky! Thank you for coming to save us!" one of them said with excitement in their voice. "Not a problem, kiddos. I grew up without a mother and father myself. So, I can relate to what you are all going through. I am just glad I was able to get you all out."

As the adult ponies who ran the orphanage thanked him for his help, he watched Pegasi fly overhead with large buckets of water to begin putting out the fire. One of the pegasi landed in front of Kalfu with a smirk on her face. "Well, well, that certainly took some guts there, kid. I don't know many brave enough to dive into the fire to do what you did literally. I am impressed." the blue pegasus said as she placed her hands on her hips.

Kalfu turned his gaze toward the rather muscular and lithe mare whose mane and tail had all the rainbow colors. She stood a good few inches taller than he did and was impressively fit—the athletic type who loved to push her limits far. "I was doing what needed to be done. It would have been a tragedy if these children never got to experience life as they grow older.". The mare smiled even wider before approaching Kalfu and slapping him hard on the back with a hardy laugh. "HA! Humble and heroic. I like you~.".

Kalfu nearly flew forward when she hit his back, making him stumble. Geez, she was strong! "W-Well, like I said, I only did what needed to be done. Now that everyone is safe, I must finish my business for the day. You all take care now." he said as he tipped his hat to the foal and the mare before making his way off to the market area. However, the mare hadn't been done with him yet.

"Hey, where you going?! We barely just talked, and I wanna hang out with someone as cool as me~," she said as she flew up to his side and playfully hip-checked him before wrapping an arm around his shoulder as he walked. Kalfu gave a light huff as she leaned against him, his face obscured under the rim of his hat before he took her arm and removed it from his shoulders. "First off, personal space, madam. Second, you don't even know me. How do you know I am 'as cool as you'?".

"Pffff, well, obviously because of what you did just now? Duh! Not to mention, you look creepy cool. YOu are like a living ghost!" she said before he stopped and looked up at her with a 'you have no idea' look before he started moving on again. "Name's Rainbow Dash, by the way. What's yours?" she asked as she moved close to him again. Not knowing anything about boundaries.

Kalfu Twitched a brow in annoyance before sighing out quietly to himself, "I am called Kalfu. It is a pleasure to meet you, madam. Now if you could please get off me? Such familiarity when you only know my name is rather…uncomfortable." he said as he stepped from her once more. But still, the tomboy couldn't get the hint. Though, she didn't drape over him this time. "Sorry, I just watched the whole thing happen from my cloud. I was planning to come and help, but then I saw that you had everything under control. And the way you popped out of the burning wreckage was awesome!" she said in her usual Rainbow Dash way.

"Oh really? I am surprised. Given what little I can tell about you. I'd think you'd want the hero treatment all to yourself." Kalfu said with an all-knowing smirk. With how many times the pony had touched him, he could read plenty about her. Her soul was full of arrogance and pride. It was bouncy and erratic with energy. But, it was good-natured, loyal, and shinned just as blue as her fur with a rainbow aura around it. A soul worth taking once the mare had passed from the world.

She stopped dead in her tracks before trying to play off the claim as a lie. "N-No! I do it for the same reason you do!." she said as she fidgeted with her hands before walking back up with him, but this time keeping her distance slightly. Kalfu chuckled before shifting his gaze. "Oh, don't lie to me, dear. You want to be the very best in every aspect. You want to be number one, praised, immortalized. It is written all over your soul." he said as he revealed his bright glowing green eyes to her as he looked within her.

Dash shudders slightly as she finally backs off. Is Kalfu finally having scared her a bit? No, he wasn't so lucky. "You know, now that I get a look at you, I think I know who you are. My friends have discussed a guy like you who can pull this mind-reading hocus pocus trick. You must be Kalfu!" she said as she exaggeratedly pointed at him. "Holy crap, I have been wanting to meet you for so long! I can see why my friends like you! Well….except maybe Twilight. But don't mind her. She is just a stick in the mud." she said as she floated up next to him again.

"Ah, so you are friends with Bookworm then? I am surprised she can handle someone as boisterous as you. And Rarity? You are her total opposite. Though, I can see you getting along with the farm girl rather easily." he said as he finally found his way into the marketplace. Dash blinked a few times as he could easily peg her when it came to her friends. Just how much did he know about them and her? How was he able to gather this knowledge?

While she was deep in thought, Kalfu took this time to quietly disappear from her line of sight and into the crowd, effectively escaping her for the time being. He let out a sigh of relief as he could finally get on with his day and do what he needed to do while he was in town. After all, he had a business to run back home.

After he did his shopping, Kalfu was on his way back home when he was suddenly spotted by a certainly posh unicorn who had called out to him with a big wave. "Kaaaal, darling~! Hellooooo~" called out Rarity as she made her way quickly to him, giving him one of the biggest hugs she could muster and placing a big kiss on his cheek. Unlike Dash, he didn't mind the affection from this pony. He wasn't sure why. Maybe because of what he knew about her and how he felt about someone so beautiful inside and out?

"Good to see you again, Rarity. And how have you been since the last time I saw you?" he asked as he returned the hug with one free arm while the other held his bag of groceries. "I have been doing quite alright, sweetie. No one has dared to bother me since the other night. I feel safe once again. Thank you for escorting a lady like myself all the way home." she said as she placed her forehead against his "Such a brave gentlestallion~."

Kalfu chuckled as he averted his eyes from her with a light blush across his face. "No reason to thank me, my dear. I was more than happy to do it. After all, if something had happened to you. I don't think your sister would be happy. She loves you so much, after all. Even though you two squabble often, she can't imagine life without you." he said as he stepped back.

"Oh? You know Sweetie Belle?" she asked with a slight tilt of her head. "Why yes. I know about her and her friends. They call themselves The Cutiemark Crusaders. A noble goal, to be sure. I hope they can find their purpose soon." he said before walking toward the forest. "I'd invite you to my home if you had the time. But.. well…I don't know how you feel about a little cabin in the swamp. And the last thing I want you to feel is uncomfortable.".

The idea of going into the swamp, much less the evergreen forest, didn't sit well with Rarity. It was kind of Kalfu to offer without hesitation. And very bold of him, too, which she liked. He wasn't afraid to invite female company over to his home. "Oh, I think I could manage~. Shall we?" She asked as she walked up to his side. Kalfu smiled and offered his arm to her, which she happily looped her own around his as she was escorted to his home.

Welp, I am testing out a little AI program that corrects things for me. Lemme know what you guys think, and I will see if it helps me any better. Maybe the darkness grant you peace.