Zira had never felt so confused. She leaned back on the wall with a slight thud, just staring at the results in her hands. She was holding both the answer to one question, but the opening of so many more.

"Zira?" Christine's voice cut through the fog, though barely. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," Zira said absently. "Can I see him?" Christine nodded and took her back. Stephen looked comfortable but tired. He was bandaged around his abdomen, and was breathing gently. The more Zira stared at him, the more she realized just how much she looked like him.

As she pulled up a chair to sit by him, Stephen stirred and slowly opened his eyes. His silver-eyed apprentice had just sat down. Though she wasn't looking at him, he could see the streaks on her face from where tears had fallen. Her hair was disheveled, and her posture told him all he needed to know: she was tired, and something was bothering her.

"Hey," he said, his voice rough with grogginess. She looked up at him, and his heart almost broke at the redness and puffiness that he saw. It was comforting to see her eyes back to their natural silver color, though the image of her with green eyes...his eyes...was permanently stored in his brain. Zira cleared her throat and tried to put on a smile for him.

"How are you feeling?" she asked him, her own voice rough.

"Like I just had my life saved by a brilliant student," he replied, grinning.

"So...shitty?" Zira commented with a small chuckle. He chuckled as well, then an awkward silence fell. The only noise was the ambiance of the emergency department they sat in. As Stephen scanned the room, his eyes fell to the tablet in Zira's hands.

"What's that?" he asked, nodding towards it. Zira looked down, seeming almost surprised that she was still holding it, then brought the screen towards her.

"Blood test results," she answered. "You needed a transfusion. I'm a universal donor, but they tested me just to be safe."

"I take it you were good?" he said.

"Yeah," she said quietly, avoiding eye contact with him. She didn't even know what to say. Hey, turns out you're my father seemed a little too up front.

"Zira," Stephen's voice broke through her thoughts. She looked up at him and saw a very serious look in his eyes. His hand was outstretched, wordlessly asking for the device in her hands. She looked at it for a moment, then with a deep breath, did as he asked, still unable to hold eye contact with him. There was another moment of silence, and the young sorceress felt when he read the paternity results, because she heard a small gasp and the plastic mattress crinkle as he stiffened. Time seemed to stand still.

Probability of Paternity: 99.99999999%.

Stephen's tired eyes were glued to that small box on the screen. His tremor in his hands became more noticeable. He tore his gaze away to look at the young woman sitting at his bedside. He took a moment to silently thank Christine, who had pulled the curtains closed to give them privacy. The more he looked at Zira, the more he saw other features that were definitely his. Her jawline and ear shape were his, as well as her lips and build. He had a funny feeling that she was also taller than her mother.

"Did you know?" Stephen snapped back to reality. Zira wasn't looking at him, but she was looking in his direction. "Did you know that you were my father?"

"No," he managed to reply after a moment. "Zira, I swear I had no idea."

"I kinda figured," Zira said quietly. "Mom never talked about you either. Maybe that's why she didn't want me going after you the day she died. I look a lot like you apparently and that was before my incident."

"Do...do you have a picture of your mom?" Stephen asked after a moment. Zira pulled out her phone and found a picture of her mom before she got sick. Zira was just a baby, but she had gotten the picture from her mom's phone. She handed it to Stephen who looked at it carefully. As his eyes went wide, she knew he remembered her, but the look of guilt that followed meant that she had been a fling, maybe even a one-night stand. She had figured as much, but seeing the realization come over his face showed that he cared. When he looked away from the picture, Zira's eyes were brimming with tears.

"I remember her," he said, his voice barely above a whisper. "It was...it was one night, after a party I went to. We just hooked up and that was it. She was even gone when I woke up. I never got her name and she never contacted me again, so I figured that was it."

"I'm still confused as to why she didn't tell me," Zira commented. Stephen shook his head and shrugged slightly. There was a long pause as they sat in silence, the ambient noises of the ER all but drowned out in their minds. Their reverie was only interrupted by a nurse that came in to check Stephens vitals and express that they wanted to keep him overnight for observation. He declined and signed the AMA form quickly. The nurse began to protest, but Christine came over and assured the nurse that this was one fight she wasn't going to win. He even declined the wheelchair. Zira frowned when he did, walked over to him, and put his arm around her shoulders.

"Zira, I'm…" he began.

"A stubborn ass who doesn't know how to ask for help when he needs it," Zira interrupted him. Stephen opened his mouth to snap at her, but a look in her eyes that reminded him of himself shut him up. His arm around her shoulder and her arm at his waist, Zira led Stephen from the ER and out into the cold air of the evening. Once they were outside, they sat down on a bench and just stared at the scenes in front of them. "What now?"

"I think that is only something you can decide," Stephen replied. "This has come to a shock to us both, but I'm not going to force you to start calling me 'Dad' or anything like that." He noticed her visibly relax.

"I'm still confused as to why mom never talked about you," she said. The two of them were silent as they both pondered that question.

"Might be something to meditate about," Stephen suggested. "Either way, we should get back. It's late, and with psycho Mordo about, the Sanctum will be the safest place for the both of us." Zira nodded, stood up, and conjured the portal back to Bleeker Street. Once they were inside, the both of them returned to Kamar Taj. Almost immediately, Zira was nearly tackled to the ground by Isioma.

"ZIRA!" she cried as she hugged her friend. Zira stumbled a bit, managed to stay on her feet, and hugged Isioma back. "When you didn't come back, I was so worried! What happened?"

"Mordo almost got me, Dr. Strange took the blow for me, I had to take him to the hospital, and we found out some...things," Zira said, giving her the summary of what had happened. "I'll give you all the details, I promise, but right now, I'm starving." Isioma practically dragged her away from the doors to the New York sanctum. Stephen just nodded at her when she looked back, a question of his well-being all over her face.

Isioma brought Zira straight to the dining hall. It was mostly empty, but they were able to get something for her from the kitchen. Once they had sat, Zira gave Isioma all of the details. Isioma listened with rapt attention. When Zira got to the paternity results, Isioma was...not as surprised as Zira thought she might be.

"I did say your eyes looked like his," she pointed out. Zira nodded.

"True, but I still wasn't expecting it," she said.

"So what are you going to do with this information?"

"I'm not sure. I mean, Mom never talked about him for a reason, but I never got a chance to ask her why," Zira said. "He suggested meditating on it. Maybe she did mention it and I either don't remember or just repressed it."

"Regardless, I'm glad you're both back safe," Isioma said. They spent the rest of the evening talking before they both decided to go to bed.