Disclaimer: All belongs to JKR.

A/N: A little different than my usual. The story starts out with Harry involved with a (yipes) girl, but will be a HP/SS pairing.

Summary: Harry’s muggle girlfriend wants to give their baby up for adoption. Instead, Harry takes the baby back to Hogwarts, and finds Snape to be unexpectedly helpful.

Harry Potter was spending yet another summer at the Privet Drive. Sixth year was over, and Harry tried not to think too much about what would happen once his final year at Hogwarts was finished. It wasn’t the prospect of finding a job, or a place to live that had him worried, but the fact that he would truly be alone.

Ron and Hermione were already full of plans, and Harry knew that after this year their friendship would never again be the same. The Dark Lord had been defeated only months before, yet Dumbledore had insisted that Harry needed to spend the summer with his aunt, citing the remaining Death Eaters as the reason he still needed to be protected.

Harry returned to Privet Drive, but he refused to be a prisoner this summer. He typically left the house in the morning and did not return until after dinner. Vernon and Petunia never questioned where he was going.

Since the end of his fifth year, when a group of members of the Order had seen him off at the train station, they rarely spoke to him or acknowledged his presence. Harry liked to wander around the small shopping area of Little Whinging, watching people as he sat at a small outdoor café.

His favorite place was a tiny bookstore, packed floor to ceiling with used books. Harry found that he could spend hours there, poring over dusty books. It was in this store that Harry made his first real muggle friend. Harry had attended Muggle primary school, but Dudley and his friends had always made it clear that no one was to be friends with Harry, and their threats worked quite well to keep Harry isolated.

Harry was back in the bookstore one Thursday morning in early July when he looked up to see a girl enter the store. She looked to be a few years older than Harry, with silky shoulder length black hair and dark eyes. She wore washed out jeans and a t-shirt that might have once been black but was now faded with age. She was slender, almost boyish, and seemed to be about Harry’s height.

Harry realized he was staring, and pulled his eyes away from the girl and tried to return to his book. If Snape had a daughter, Harry swore she would have had this girl’s exact coloring. Of course, this girl had a very cute little nose, so Harry snorted softy to himself. He doubted that any child of Snape’s could avoid having his patrician nose.

He was startled from his reverie when a soft voice said, “Excuse me, but do you have any idea if this store carries any books about the history of this area?” Harry looked up to find the girl directly in front of him, large brown eyes focused on him, waiting for a reply.

“Oh, um, well, there are lots, but, um, not exactly organized.” Harry swallowed, and then plunged on ahead. “Um, I could, you know, um, help you out a bit if you like. I know the store pretty well.” She regarded him warily for a minute, and then smiled.

Holding out her hand, she introduced herself. “Caitlin Davies, pleased to meet you. And if you wouldn’t mind, I’d love some help.” Harry realized he had been holding his breath, and relaxed. “Harry, Harry Potter. Let me show you a few books I’ve seen.”

Harry and Caitlin met almost daily in the store after that. Harry got up his courage after a few days to ask her out for lunch, and was a bit surprised when she asked him exactly how old he was.

“I’ll be seventeen this month. Is that a problem? You’re what, eighteen?”

“Actually I’m almost twenty. It’s kind of funny, because you look younger than you are, but you sound much older, more mature than most seventeen year olds.”

“Well, I haven’t exactly had a sheltered life. My parents died before I was even two, and I’ve had to look out for myself for most of my life. I’ve been at boarding school for six years, and a few of my, ah, adventures have given me a different perspective on life than others my own age. I know I’ll only be here until the end of the summer, but I’d like to get to know you better, spend some time with you.”

“I’d like that too. My classes don’t start until early September, so I’m pretty free until then. Maybe you could show me around a bit?”

They started to spend most of their days together, sometimes going for a walk, sometimes going back to Caitlin’s small flat. Harry learned that she was an exchange student, living in England for the year. She would return to the States for one more year of college, and then she hoped to be accepted into graduate school.

Their friendship moved from friends to lovers, Harry shyly responding to her overtures, happy to be with someone who didn’t know that he was famous, who only judged him for himself. Harry was actually sad to see the summer draw to a close. He had always hated being at Privet Drive for the summer, but the thought of returning to school this year was bittersweet, knowing that he would not be able to see Caitlin again.

He wasn’t ready to completely say good-bye to her even though it was time to return to Hogwarts. He gave her the address for Hermione’s parents, telling her that she could reach him through his schoolmate’s parents. He wasn’t sure if she believed his explanation that his boarding school only allowed students to receive calls from parents, but he felt better knowing that at least if she wanted to write to him that her letters would be forwarded by Mrs. Granger.

Harry left for Hogwart’s with a heavy heart. He had cared for Caitlin, and it would be strange to be alone again, even with Ron and Hermione for company. He was also confused because as much he cared for Caitlin, he could not completely get rid of the strange thoughts he had been having regarding Professor Snape. He would show up in Harry’s dreams, his voice sending shivers down Harry’s back as his long fingers would reach out to touch Harry.

He had found several books that seemed to say that many people were attracted to people of both sexes, but he still had a hard time reconciling how he could be attracted to both Caitlin and Snape at the same time.

School work and Quidditch soon consumed Harry’s life. Harry made an all out effort to improve his relationship with Professor Snape. He forced himself to spend inordinate amounts of time on his potions homework. He had even gone so far as to ask the potions master for extra help.

He could tell that Snape was surprised that Harry seemed to genuinely want to do well in his class. He had agreed to tutor Harry in exchange for his help chopping, grinding, and dicing ingredients. He tried not to dwell on the fact that Caitlin had not written to him at all, despite his frequent notes to her.

At Christmas, Harry sent Hermione home with a small box to be mailed to Caitlin, containing a card and delicate necklace Harry had found at a shop in Hogsmeade. Hermione returned after break and reassured him that she had indeed sent his package, but no mail had come for him at her house.

Spring was finally in the air, and Harry was finding that actually understood Snape’s sense of humor, and could finally discern when the man was teasing him rather than being truly aggravated by him. Harry’s competence in Potions was steadily improving, and Snape had begun to allow Harry to help him prepare more advanced potions.

Hermione was pleased that Harry was working so hard to improve his grades, and was now focusing more on Ron when it came to nagging about homework and studying. Ron was at a loss to understand why Harry would willingly spend any time with Snape outside of the required classroom time.

It was the end of April when Hermione came running into the common room to grab Harry by the arm, dragging him up to his room to talk to him. Fortunately, girls were allowed access to the boy’s dorm room, even though boys were prevented from entering the girls’ dorm.

“Harry, I was just in the Headmaster’s office. You know how the headmaster has a warded floo connection solely for muggle born students and their parents to use for making fire calls? Well, I just talked to my mother. Your friend Caitlin called; she needs you, some emergency. Here, she left an address for you, she needs you immediately.”

Harry looked at the paper, stunned. There was a London address on the paper. “Does Dumbledore know about this? I mean, does he know about Caitlin, and that the message was for me?”

“No, he left the room while I talked to Mum. He thinks it’s an emergency with my family. Harry, what are you going to do?”

“I’m going to see her. I’ll take my broom to Hogsmeade; I can sneak into Rosmerta’s and floo to Grimmauld Place from there. There’s an underground station close to the house. I should be able to get to this address pretty quickly that way.”

“Harry, be careful. Make sure you take enough money for the underground.”

Harry put on his winter cloak, and threw his invisibility cloak over that. He grabbed his Firebolt and dashed out of the common room, and was racing out of the castle within minutes. His cloak allowed him to slip into Rosmerta’s, and he used the floo connection in the back room of the pub to go to Grimmauld Place. Harry left his broom and invisibility cloak there, and took off running for the underground to find the address Caitlin had left for him.

Twenty minutes later, Harry was staring in some confusion at a small building with a plaque on the front which read ‘Louise B. Rainsford Birthing Center.’ He approached the building with some trepidation, sure the address was wrong.

Inside, a young woman was seated at a desk in the small lobby. “Good evening, may I help you?”

“Um, I’m not sure. I’m looking for Caitlin Davies. She told me to find her here, but I think I may be at the wrong place?”

She looked down at some papers in front of her. “Your name, please?”

“Harry, Harry Potter.”

“Yes, here’s your name on her list. Caitlin is in the blue room. Follow me, right this way.”

Harry followed her down a hallway, until they reached a blue door. She opened it slightly, saying, “Go right in. I’m sure she’ll be happy to see you.”

Harry pushed the door open, and was surprised to see Caitlin lying in a bed, apparently asleep.

“Caitlin? Caitlin, it’s me, Harry.”

Caitlin opened her eyes at Harry’s voice, relief evident in her gaze. “Harry, you came. I wasn’t sure if you’d get my message, or if you’d want to come.” She put out her hand for him, and Harry reached out to clutch her hand, leaning down to press his face into the warmth of her neck.

“Why are you here? What’s going on?” Harry looked at her in confusion, trying to put the pieces together.

“Harry, look behind you.” Harry turned and could not contain his gasp of surprise when he saw the bassinet and the tiny baby lying inside. He was drawn forward, his hand reaching out to touch the tiny face.

The baby was swaddled in a pink blanket, only her small face showing. A small knit cap was on her head, thin black wisps of hair escaping from under the front edge. At Harry’s touch, the baby opened her eyes for a moment, just long enough for Harry to see how dark they were.

Harry turned and looked at Caitlin, unaware of the tears running down his face. “She’s mine, isn’t she? Why didn’t you tell me before? How could you keep this from me?”