The funny thing is that you could do something like this with a variant Draco that really wasn't all that variant. Remember, Draco really *did* try to be Harry's friend at the beginning. He did it in completely the wrong way - insulting the first person to ever try to be Harry's friend, and acting in some ways an awful lot like Dudley and Co - but he did try. From that point, the thing that had Harry hitting Gryffindor rather than Slytherin was his own desperate desire to avoid being anything like the obnoxious blond kid.
So lets say that the difference is simply what day Harry shows up at Diagon alley? Instead of being there with his cronies, Draco is there with his (rather overbearing) father, having just found Draco's wand. Lucius, something of a competent manipulator, notices the Boy Who Lived straight off, and strikes up an argument with Hagrid, pushing the poor guy's hot buttons enough to keep him away from the wand-choosing process. Draco fills the expositional void, is suitably impressed with Harry's wand, and tosses in some of his "be Slytherin so that you can be powerful so that your life doesn't suck" philosophy, rather than the bits that involve marginalizing anyone. It's convincing. and so on.
This lends itself to a far grayer world. Slytherin is no different at first - it is only Harry's opinions that change. Of course, over time, having the heroics centered around Slytherin could have some interesting effects on interhouse politics, as Gryfindor feels outdone at their own game, but...
grr... out of mojo.
Sirrocco
So lets say that the difference is simply what day Harry shows up at Diagon alley? Instead of being there with his cronies, Draco is there with his (rather overbearing) father, having just found Draco's wand. Lucius, something of a competent manipulator, notices the Boy Who Lived straight off, and strikes up an argument with Hagrid, pushing the poor guy's hot buttons enough to keep him away from the wand-choosing process. Draco fills the expositional void, is suitably impressed with Harry's wand, and tosses in some of his "be Slytherin so that you can be powerful so that your life doesn't suck" philosophy, rather than the bits that involve marginalizing anyone. It's convincing. and so on.
This lends itself to a far grayer world. Slytherin is no different at first - it is only Harry's opinions that change. Of course, over time, having the heroics centered around Slytherin could have some interesting effects on interhouse politics, as Gryfindor feels outdone at their own game, but...
grr... out of mojo.
Sirrocco