Harry Potter An alternate beginning

[DhampyrX2]

Ok, we all know Snape looks evil right now, but that the likelihood he really is evil is just too easy. The fact JKR actually took Alan Rickman aside and told him, and only him, what the seventh book will entail for Snape smacks of a redemption arc for the potions Master.

Which brings up this idea for some odd reason. We all know Snape seemed to at least tolerate Lily, maybe even care for her. What if, taking that into account, Snape was the one to go after and get to Wormtail first in a bid to avenge Lily? Obviously, Sirius would care for Harry as he'd remain a respected Auror and Snape would earn some Ministry credibility for killing a major Death Eater and traitor.

So, how would this change things?

Comments? Suggestions? Ideas?

 

[Hawk]

I actually think it would be more interesting if Snape failed to catch Wormtail and he was the one to wind up in Azkaban. Sure, Sirius knows that Peter was the Secret Keeper and all that, but would he reveal that?

After all, it's his old arch-nemesis Snape who gets to suffer and being a former Death Eater and all, he could probably expect even less mercy then Sirius if he were to be framed for those murders, magic in public and whatnot.

Lots of moral dilemmas in such a twist, which is something I like to see in a story.


Anyways, back to the original idea.

Well, obviously Harry wouldn't be Harry anymore. With such a radical change in his upbringing, he'd be a *vastly* different person. I can picture him having a great fondness for pranks, or that he got so fed up with 'em growing up that he's now radically opposed to them ( albeit probably extremly good at spotting them and working out the mechanics behind them ).

He wouldn't be ignorant of wizarding society and customs, as I hardly think Sirius would go all-out muggle. On the other hand, he'd probably be ignorant of muggle society to a much greater extent then canon Harry, though probably not as much as most Purebloods as Sirius seems at least somewhat aquainted with the muggle world.

Hogwarts probably wouldn't be the first time he ever sat on a broom, as I can imagine Sirius encouraging and nurturing even the faintest hint of interest in Q.

He'd probably know at least a bit of magic, perhaps not more then a handful of spells, but I don't think Sirius would have waited until it's time to start Hogwarts to get Harry a wand.

But the changes to focus on, would be Harry's personality and behavior, which greatly depends on how well Sirius handles being a parent. I don't think he'd make a very good one, to be honest and chances are that Harry would be a spoiled brat somewhat along the lines of Malfoy.

On the other hand, if he's not cooped up in prison, mayhap he's managed to land himself a wife or a 'close male friend' who can balance out his corrupting influence on a growing young boy.

Remus could be a calming influence, pending on how accepted werewolves are. If it's just general dislike of them, nae problem. If it's more then that, it'd probably attract too much attention if a werewolf spent too much time around the boy-who-lived, so his influence would probably be minor at best.

Anyways, first port of call when writing this fic, should be to determine just how Harry is different from canon and then go from there, working out a story from that.

At least for character-centric ol' me.

 

[DhampyrX2]

You're assuming one thing with Snape, that he'd let himself be in a position to get caught no matter how angry he was. I seriously doubt he'd let things boil down to a confrontation on the street that Wormtail could exploit for a getaway. Good guy or bad, he's someone that was smart enough to spend deacades in the enemy camp without getting caught. I doubt he'd be in a position to be blamed for Wormtail's apparent kamikaze run. Especially of he could approach the rat as a 'fellow Death Eater'. All he'd have to do at that point is talk Peter into meeting him to help regroup with the others, only the only two there are him and the rat. The rest as they say, is a tortuous death at the hands of a creative mind.

Besides, I have hard time picturing Hogwarts without the greasy git. He was always a needed counterpoint to Dumbledore. The bad cop to the Headmaster's kindly old grandfather image, as it were.

The most interesting wrinkle, I think, would be if a Sirius raised Harry was just sneaky enough to accept being sorted into Slytherin as a way to upset his guardian. That would put a monkey wrench in several plans.

 

[Fatuous One]

...I honestly have a hard time seeing Snape going after Wormtail at ALL. You're kind of mixing things here. You're saying that Snape would be 'smart' enough to not let himself get caught in a position like that. However, if he were actually that 'smart' he probably wouldn't have even gone after Wormtail in the first place. After all "good guy or bad, he's someone that was smart enough to spend decades in the enemy camp without getting caught." That also means being smart enough to let the side your on to take a hit if necessary.

Also, regarding Wormtail, Snape never knew that Wormtail was a Death Eater. I'm not even sure that he would think of the rat as one after the Potter's were attacked either, as Sirius was supposedly the Secret Keeper. I'm also pretty sure Wormtail wouldn't want to be anyway NEAR any other Death Eaters either, not without his master close by, they aren't exactly a close knitted family after all.

Anyway, Hawk wasn't even saying that Snape wouldn't be able to get out of it, he was saying that it would be more interesting.

The "Sirius raising Harry" bit has been done before (albeit with Sirius usually on the run), but I really haven't seen a fic that actually does it realistically. That is, Harry almost ALWAYS has the same personality as if he had been raised by the Dursleys.