What if Harry disappeared the night of the attack on his parents' home? And though Dumbledore looked for him, he searched in vain? What if Harry was raised under another name, and not by the Dursleys, but by another family? A wizarding family. And not a family Dumbledore would approve of. All will be explained in this story, a very alternate universe. Not sure how far I'll go with it, but possibly all the books eventually, if I get a good response.

This is NOT Harry Potter as you know him. This will start off with the same basic premise, but I intend to go off in a very different direction. Feel free to explain why you think what I've got is incorrect, but don't expect me to change things unless I tend to agree with the point you're making.

The characters are not mine, they all belong to her, so I promise I won't hurt them…too much.

Finding Harry

«--Prologue--»

Potters Die in Attack on Home

1 November, 1981

Godric's Hollow. James and Lily Potter, well-known fighters against He-who-must-not-be-named, were found dead in their ruined home late last night by Aurors who had been sent to check on reports of a blast in that area. It is believed that the Dark Lord came to kill them and their one-year-old son, Harry. Unfortunately, the boy was missing when the Aurors arrived, leading to speculation on where the child could be. Some believe that the Dark Lord has taken the child to raise as his own, and others think that when he tried to kill the child, both of them were completely destroyed.

Albus Dumbledore, a good friend of the Potters and headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, has offered a reward leading to any information about the whereabouts of young Harry Potter. He stated that he did not believe that the Dark Lord was gone, but that his attack on the Potters has severely weakened him, and that he cannot currently threaten the wizarding world. He says that he also believes that the Potter boy is still alive somewhere. He is, however, quite concerned about the boy's disappearance. He stated that the Ministry of Magic should work hard to find the child and ensure his safety, as he is now entirely without family in the magical community.

This reporter hopes the headmaster of Hogwarts is correct about the Dark Lord's disappearance, and that young Harry Potter is safe, wherever he is.

Rita Skeeter, reporting for the Daily Prophet.

2 November, 1981

London. Sirius Black, friend of the recently murdered Potters, was captured today, shortly after a horrific attack in a Muggle street. Before the Muggle witnesses were memory charmed by attending Aurors, several of them said that Black had been accosted by another friend of the Potters, one Peter Pettigrew, who accused Black of betraying the Potters to He-who-must-not-be-named. Upon being confronted, Black destroyed not only Pettigrew, but several Muggles in the vicinity. It is speculated that Black may have betrayed his friends to the Dark Lord to gain a high position in his inner circle.

Peter Pettigrew is being hailed as a hero, and has been posthumously awarded the Order of Merlin, second class for his brave confrontation of the murderer, Black. His service will take place next Saturday at noon on his mother's estate near Cambridge.

Black is being charged with fourteen counts of murder, not to mention several violations of Muggle secrecy codes. Minister Crouch has denied him even a trial. "Everyone knows that the blackguard is guilty," the Minister has said. "Why waste time and galleons on a trial that will only prove what we all know? It is better to simply have him off the streets. Muggles and Magical people alike will sleep much safer tonight because of it." This reporter agrees with the minister, and hopes that Black is truly the strongest of the Dark Lord's followers, as that would mean that the Death Eaters' reign of terror is nearly at an end.

Rita Skeeter, reporting for the Daily Prophet.

Dumbledore folded up the latest copy of the Daily Prophet and placed it on his desk. It had been a week, now, and Harry was still missing. He refused to believe the boy was gone. Surely there would have been a body if Riddle had managed to kill the boy. And yet, when Hagrid had arrived there, the only living person there had been Sirius.

Dumbledore took off his spectacles and rubbed at his eyes. Sirius…he simply couldn't believe it. Yes, Dumbledore had asked the Potters to let him be their secret-keeper, but he'd never really believed that if Sirius was their secret-keeper that he would betray them. It was beyond anything he could possibly have ever believed. Sirius and James had been like brothers ever since they had attended Hogwarts together. And Sirius had left his family rather than join them in their Muggle-bashing ways. How could Sirius go from James and Lily's closest friend to being their betrayer?

But Riddle was crafty. He always seemed to know just what people needed to draw them to his side. Promises, trickery, even the Imperious Curse had been used. He didn't envy Crouch his job of sorting through all the Death Eaters that had been captured so far. Dumbledore just hoped that the entire thing wouldn't turn into a witch hunt. It was good that they had already caught so many Death Eaters. Too bad Lucius Malfoy, always a slippery devil, would be able to wiggle out of things as usual.

Dumbledore's thoughts turned back to Sirius. Perhaps he had taken Harry and hidden him away. He did seem to genuinely care for the boy. But if Sirius had been with Riddle, perhaps that had all just been an act? And what if he'd taken Harry and…no, he just couldn't believe anyone would do that to a defenseless child. And Dumbledore would certainly have felt it if Riddle's spell had had its intended effect. The boy just had to be alive somewhere.

And Dumbledore would not rest until he found him.