Prologue

(Sequel to Common Interests)

Common Troubles

*In the last episode*

The car bounced and jerked horribly

"Stop, we are going to crash!" Ron whimpered

"Dante, the car is shaking!" Harry said, behind him, Hedwig screeched

"So am I, shut up so I can concentrate! This is going to be tricky"

Dante shifted the car wheel a quarter turn to the right and the car skidded, almost falling on top of the train.

Ron was clasping his hands together, praying and Harry gripped his wand so hard, he was surprised that it didn't snap.

The car was still in one piece but for how long unless Dante could accurately land it. As Harry felt his heart go up into his throat. Harry hoped they would all survive and if they did survive this, then he hoped they wouldn't be in too much trouble with his dad, but right then he wasn't sure if his luck had finally run out….

Common troubles

Dante, Harry and Ron finally saw an end to their tricky adventure, but their hope was short lived when they saw where they were possibly going to land. Dante pulled his wand out and cried "Stop! Stop! Stop!" It did no good and his terror multiplied when they crashed into the large tree in the grounds of Hogwarts. They were all shaken to the core when the tree started attacking them. The tree's branches crashed through the windows and then they got jolted so hard, it pushed the car onto the ground underneath the tree. "Drive! Dante!" Harry shouted.

Dante put the car back into gear and drove forward out of the way just as the tree slumped forward nearly killing all three occupants.

"Merlin, that was a very aggressive tree!" Ron said shakily "My dad's car is wrecked! My parents are going to be so angry!"

The car doors opened automatically and threw out the three occupants followed by their familiars and their trunks.

When Harry turned around and started dragging his trunk behind him, he saw his adopted father with his arms folded and a furious look upon his face, not looking pleased, he swallowed the lump in his throat. Dante also saw the look on Professor Snape's face and gulped but Ron was the most fearful, even though he knew that Professor Snape's bark was worse than his bite and Snape had adopted his best mate. "What happened to make you disobey my rules for a fourth time, Harry?" Severus hissed, and Harry screwed up his eyes at the disappointment on his father's face as he looked down at his feet in shame. Severus looked down at all three young boys and rolled his eyes. "What happened, and don't all try to speak at once? Dante?"

"We were hounded by the press who wanted to get photos of Harry on the muggle side of the platform and then it was blocked for no reason, we were going to wait for Mr and Mrs Weasley, but we thought they couldn't get through. Anyway, Ron told me about his parent's car and I am a good driver, but I am worried we were seen by muggles outside King's Cross Station, sir!"

"All three of you could have been killed, you would have done better to wait for Arthur and Molly in a muggle waiting room than take such foolish risks by flying and enchanted car all the way to Hogwarts. All of you will serve detention with me tomorrow and I will remove 25 points from Gryffindor for your stupid stunt. Harry, you and I will go over the house rules tomorrow again and this will serve to remind you to not take unnecessary risks with your life. Dante, you are yet to be sorted into your chosen house. Headmaster Dumbledore will sort you tomorrow seeing as the welcoming feast is over. I imagine you are all hungry and more than a little shaken and traumatised by this incident. It will do me no good to keep having a go at all three of you. I will ask the house elves to bring you a meal and some pumpkin juice."

"Well, get going then!" Severus barked

Harry, Dante and Ron all hung their heads as they walked ahead. "Great, the school year's not even begun, and we are already in trouble." Ron grumbled "It could be worse, cheer up, he's my dad and nothing hurts worse than the look of disappointment he was staring me down with. We have spats sometimes and although I feel sad about it, we normally sit down and talk it out."

"You can talk, my mum usually sends howlers when she is really steaming mad!" Ron whined again and then he stormed off to the great hall entrance.

"Harry, you aren't mad at me, are you?" Dante asked quietly

"No, I'm not mad at you, I just wish we had waited for Ron's mum and dad."

Severus' mouth lifted in one corner as he steered both Dante and Harry towards his family quarters in the Dungeons.

There was an air of nervousness as they sat at the family table and ate their meals in silence. But Harry cracked first and burst into tears which alarmed Severus' as he gathered his adopted son in his embrace. "There, there, the worst is over, I can't keep doing this though, Harry, you are going to cause me to have heart failure before long now tell me, why do you think that the passage to the platform was blocked?"

Harry blew his nose and wiped his tears as he begun his tale about Dobby the house elf…

A/N I asked and Snapesgirl has agreed that I could write the final part of her "common" trilogy, I hope I live up to her expectation and her quality of writing.