Disclaimer: I do not own Shaman King, nor do I own any of the characters from the original manga. Hiroyuki Takei owns Shaman King. I own myself and all of my characters. That including Sofia and Hana Horutari. I own the rights to this fanfic so bleh.

Author's Note: This chapter takes place after the whole fight with Tao En. The night right after really before they leave for back home.

Author's Note2: Translations! 'Stoppen Sie zu schreien' means stop crying, there'll be another 'Was?' later on, which means 'what?'.

"Oww! Man." Horohoro hissed between his teeth. His shirt was off and his chest was covered in bruises and cuts. His legs were no better.

According to Sofia, who was the doctor of the evening, he'd sprained his ankle and it was now in wrapping.

"Stoppen Sie zu schreien." Sofia muttered, spreading out some alcohol on one particularly deep cut.

"What'd you say?" Horohoro asked. "Dude, what'd she say?" He looked up, apparently scared that she would be insulting him in a different language. Yoh laughed, having already been taken care of, along with Ryu.

"I haven't a clue." Horohoro pouted and winced again as she started on a new cut.

"Oh stop it. Be happy I don't have to stitch anything." The snowboarder immediately shivered at the thought. Kororo had her hands over her mouth, worried about her master being in such pain.

"When are you gonna start bandaging yourself?" Manta asked, sitting on one of the beds with a fortune cookie from dinner. Sofia talked without even looking up.

"I already did in the bathroom." She said bluntly, pulling out a bag of ice for Horohoro.

"No way! I didn't hear you make a peep in there." The blue-haired teen protested, taking the bag of ice and placing it on a bruise.

"You mean you didn't hear me whining about fixing up some cuts? That's because I didn't." She smiled and started capping the alcohol. "Where's Ren? I still have to work on him."

"Uh," Yoh stood up and went over to the window. "There he is. On the next floor by the balcony." Yoh added the last part for Sofia's sake. "Want me to take you down?"

Sofia shook her head while closing her medical suitcase. "It's okay, Frankensteiny'll take me to him." She then kneeled to the dog made of bones and oversoul. "Won't you Frankensteiny?"

The dog barked in compliance and nuzzled her neck. Sofia smiled and stood up, picking up her walking stick and following her pet out.

…

Ren stood outside on the balcony, just like Yoh had said. He still wore his battle rags. The pants that had been tied up above his calves and his shoes were all that covered him, despite the cold October night.

Though of course his mind was too busy to be worrying about silly things like the temperature. Today had been... a long one.

Life would be different now. A lot different. Without his father to boss him around or use him as a pawn, he was free to make his own choices. To live the life he wanted.

And he wanted a happy life.

One without hatred and the belief that everyone was an enemy. Ren had friends to back him up. Good ones at that. And he would work hard to make sure his life lasted the way it was. Him and his sister would.

"Ren?" He glanced over his shoulder, hearing the padding of feet and the familiar tapping of a walking stick on the ground. He looked down and saw Sofia had used her bone dog to find him.

"What is it?" He asked sharply, looking back out to the desolate scenery of the surrounding mountains. He heard her come a little closer.

"I need to bandage up your wounds." She said, coming up beside him.

"I'm fine."

"I'm blind Ren, not deaf. I heard all the hits you took in the battle." Sofia remarked going over to the bench near the railing and putting down her suitcase, as if that had settled it.

"I don't need any bandaging." He said, more firmly this time. Ren refused to let others see his weakness... he supposed it was just a habit picked up from his training. Mind over matter, he would keep his body standing in pride even with both his legs broken. But Sofia was now opening up her suitcase.

"Nonsense. It's not going to take long anyway." Ren gripped the railing tightly. He certainly wouldn't let a girl see his body show his pain.

"Look I'll do it myself then." Sofia raised her eyebrows lightly with a confident smile.

"Then you admit you need to be bandaged." Ren blinked before taking in a deep breath, looking off to the mountains. "Besides, I have more medical training than all you boys put together."

"I just want to be alone." Sofia looked up at him through her sunglasses. Despite the fact she couldn't see him... it was an odd feeling. He didn't like it. He suddenly felt rather vulnerable to her. She rose to her feet, still facing him.

"Please Ren?" He looked back up at her and saw her expression was one of pleading. She was asking him now. She was asking him to let her take care of him. Why was she so hung up on healing him?

He let out an annoyed sighed and sat over on the bench. "Fine." Sofia smiled and sat with him. Obviously happy with her victory. "Stubborn German..."

"Thank you Ren." She dragged her fingers along the contents of her suitcase, picking up a bottled liquid. She traced her fingertips along the label, which he saw was in brail, and she dabbed it on a cloth she'd had in her pocket. "Okay, where are your wounds?"

Ren hmphed. "You're the medical expert here, you figure it out." Sofia laughed with a shake of her head.

"Fine, fine."

She used her free hand to touch his chest, running it over his bare skin, making Ren shiver. Thanks to her, he suddenly noticed the cold October air.

But she continued. Even took her glove off. Ren couldn't even try to focus on his surroundings or on his thoughts like his meditation had taught him to, his mind was all on how Sofia treated him. Gingerly and with care. Something he wasn't exactly used to. It didn't take her long to find a deep slash along the side of his mid section.

"You're lucky, any deeper and that blow could've broken those ribs." Sofia commented, starting to dab the cloth on his wound. She sounded as if she'd done this for a hobby.

As soon as the liquid touched his blood, Ren felt like he could feel every individual bacteria dying. But all he let out was a wince. It was all about mind over matter. Keeping weakness and the pain inside. And to his surprise, Sofia winced with him. When she found another cut on his arm and tended to that, his lip twitched. And Sofia, in the exact same fashion, did as well.

"What are you doing?" Sofia looked up at Ren's bewildered expression.

"Was?"

"Have you treated your own wounds yet?" Ren asked. Though it actually could have been one of concern, Ren managed to make it sound accusing.

"Of course I have. I did before I started working on any of you boys."

"You're lying I can see you flinch in pain!"

Sofia gave a light shrug, picking up a container with some gauze in it. "I don't know what you're talking about Ren. Maybe you got hit on the head a few times."

Ren threw her a scorn, folding his arms. "My head is fine! If you wish to work on me then you'll treat yourself first!" Sofia, though he couldn't see, rolled her eyes with a scoff.

She rolled up the sleeve to her outfit and showed off bruising with bandaging wrapped around her wrist and her upper arm. "See? You're hallucinating."

And with that, she began tending to other cuts around his mid section. Ren held up his arms, looking off to the side. He'd wince a little or stiffen up whenever stung by the alcohol, but every time he did, Sofia seemed to slow down the pace or lighten her rubbing.

"Let me see your wrist." Ren was snapped out of his thoughts once more, finding quite a bit of his stomach wrapped in bandages.

"What for?"

"Just let me see it." She held out her hand in demand, giving him a stern but calm expression. Ren gave her his left wrist and she poked and prodded certain parts. After a minute or so, she demanded the other wrist.

Ren twitched as she began prodding his right hand. Sofia twitched just after, and in almost the same fashion. She then sighed.

"You've sprained your wrist." She said pulling out some clean wrapping to use. Ren rolled his eyes.

"It's fine."

"I'll decide that. You best give that hand a rest." He hated how superior she tried to make herself sound. Sofia stretched out the wrapping at two arms' length before cutting it. Ren was about to take it and wrap his hand himself, but instead she took his hand and wrapped it. "Just stay still."

"Yes, because it'd be quite a bother if I managed an escape." He said, a little annoyed with how long this was taking. Sofia grinned before clipping the wrapping.

"There, all done. Anything wrong with your legs? Or are going to continue to be stubborn and just have me do a cavity search?" Ren's eyes widened lightly. Mostly because he really thought she was serious. Sofia took his silence as a stun and laughed. "I'm kidding! It's a joke, it's a joke."

Ren let out a deep breath and ran a hand through his hair. "It wasn't funny." But apparently his protest only made her laugh more.

"O-of course not. Ha-my mistake." She waved her hand to dismiss the subject and calmed herself down. "Now IS there anything wrong with your legs."

He looked down and saw nothing more than some bruising.

"They're fine."

"You're lying." He gave her an incredulous look.

"Excuse you?"

"What's wrong with your legs?" He flexed his free hand in frustration.

"Nothing! Just some bumps." But of course, that made Sofia reach back into her suitcase.

"Put ice on those or they'll swell."

"Do you always baby your patients like this?"

"Only the stubborn ones."