Disclaimer: JKR's world and all. A few OC's are mine.

Mary MacDonald finished her story and sat back in her chair with an eerie, cheerful look in her face. Kingsley cleared his throat. "Some aurors will be arriving soon, I believe. We need to bring MacDonald to the Ministry for questioning. She clearly knows a great deal about what Malfoy was doing."

Minerva raised her hand. "A visit to St. Mungo's is in order, Kingsley. Possibly, if she knew about Harry Potter's experiences with Peter, and the life debts involved..."

Mary suddenly leaned forward and grabbed Barbara by the hand. "You understand, don't you? You have a husband, and children. You would do anything to protect them. Wouldn't you have done the same things? You are so fierce about protecting your own. You know you would lie, cheat, or kill in order to do it. You would betray anyone or anything. Wouldn't you?"

Barbara just stared at the other woman, unable to speak or pull away. She didn't think she could do such things, but with the full force of Mary's venomous anguish pushed upon her, she didn't know what she would do. She tried to shake her head but found she couldn't move at all.

"Let go." Snape had been watching the interplay between the two witches and was worried about the look coming into his wife's eyes. "Let go." He stood and pushed MacDonald back into her chair, then knelt next to his wife, holding her hand. She wouldn't look into his eyes but kept looking at MacDonald, who sat in her chair with a malevolent smile on her face.

The aurors arrived and in the disruption of the moment, Severus lifted his wife out of her chair and led her from the room and out of the tower, whispering in her ear. "Let's go back. The babies will want you."

She shook her head. "Would I do that? She says I would do that. I can't go near the babies. I will contaminate them. I need to go somewhere far, far away."

A door appeared in the hallway. Severus led Barbara to the door and into the Room of Requirement. They found themselves in what appeared to be a beach cottage. Through a window, they could see palm trees swaying and hear ocean waves crashing on the beach.

Severus pulled his wife within his arms and said, quietly, "You're nothing like that. You wouldn't make choices like that."

"I don't know. Wouldn't I?"

"Is there any circumstance in which you would sell out Kingsley? Or Minerva?"

"I sold out everyone. When I left with my parents. All I could think of was keeping them safe."

"You didn't do anything you knew would be deliberately harmful when you left. How many did you smuggle out of the country before then?"

"It doesn't matter. I put my family first."

"Only after you helped others. Sure, your whole plan was to help your parents, but you planned it so that you could help as many others as possible."

Barbara's eyes had lost that empty look and tears were now running down her face. Severus pulled her over to a couch and sat down with his arms around her, taking the needle out of her hair and stroking the brown tangle that fell around her shoulders. He said, "I have a lot more in common with Wormtail than you do, perhaps I'm guilty. I'm the one who alerted the Dark Lord to the prophecy that made him target the Potters."

"Oh, no, you're a hero! As soon as you realized what you had done, you went to Dumbledore! You worked against Voldemort ever since."

"And you worked closely with Kingsley and Mad Eye, and the others. Think of all the good things you've done. Think how hard you've worked to make things better since the war. Think of all you've done for me."

"You're right, of course. I don't know what's come over me."

"I do. When she grabbed your hand, you absorbed some of her rage. She was trying to put her own guilt onto you. When she finally let go, she had a pleased look in her eye. She was trying, one last time, to damage anything good that she could. She is possessed with a certain kind of madness, which she wanted to pass on to you. You take so much onto yourself. Let me comfort you, Barbara. Share the distress with me."

He pulled her fully into his arms and kissed the tears as they slid down her cheeks. He could feel her body soften within his arms and her arms go around his waist. After a while the tears stopped and they simply held each other.

A while later, perhaps minutes or perhaps longer, Barbara lifted her face and captured Severus' lips with her own. He kissed her back and she sighed with pleasure as she pressed herself against him and kissed him harder.

"It's not really the place or time, my dear..."

"It is a perfectly fine time, and isn't there a bed behind that screen? Love me, Severus. Share your strength and courage and sanity with me."

There was indeed a bed behind a rattan screen on one side of the room. Severus lifted his wife from the couch and carried her around the screen. He lowered her onto the bed and sat next to her. Barbara kissed him, feverishly, but he held her face in his hands and slowed her down. "Sh, love, we have plenty of time." Holding her hands, he kissed her gently, guiding her head to the pillows.

They lay together for a long while, kissing, exchanging their very souls, until Barbara realized that Severus was unfastening her robes. Soon they were both undressed and she felt the most gentle of caresses along her body. Her sighs were lost to the lips that kept hers captive, until his lips followed his hands, allowing her to sigh and murmur with delight. She couldn't remember a time when he had taken such infinite care of her, as if he feared to hurt her.

After a while Severus reclaimed Barbara's lips and hands and she abandoned herself to the intoxication that was her husband.

Some time later, Barbara came back to herself. She was clasped in Severus' arms. He was kissing her forehead and running a hand through her hair. "...and with my body, I thee worship..." she murmured.

"Yes, my love?"

"From our wedding vows. I didn't quite understand what it meant, but I think, Professor, you have just given me the practical demonstration. You have made me feel exquisite. Severus, to say that I love you doesn't begin to describe what I feel right now."

In response, he leaned over her and kissed her, then leaned back and pulled her close again, whispering his love for her into her hair.

After a while Severus rolled over and looked at her. "Barbara, I suspect there are two people downstairs who are feeling as though they would like some time with their mum. Are you ready to go back to our apartment?"

"Hmmm, if we must."


Headmistress McGonagall spoke with the faculty members during dinner the next night. The official story was that Professor MacDonald was required to go to London for an inquiry. Since final exams would start the next week, her absence was not a significant problem. However, all of the professors would need to help cover her exams.

Along with all of the teachers, Barbara and Severus nodded their heads and agreed to help. They were a bit distracted, though, since each had one of the twins in one arm and was trying to eat with a free hand. The twins attracted a great deal of attention in the Great Hall, since they rarely came to meal times, but they had woken from their naps and their parents did not want to leave them. At almost four months of age they had stopped looking like newborns and had filled out to the cute baby age. They knew how to use their dark eyes to flirt and smile at anyone who looked at them. They were dressed in matching rompers with the slogan, "My other house is Slytherin."

Barbara looked at the Gryffindor table. "I'm a little worried about Anthony. He seems a bit peaked."

"I'm sure he's just tired from studying so hard for his OWLs."

"Maybe."

"Did you get the one gift out of storage?"

"Yes. I nearly caught it from Bitsy for 'working' when I had a sore hand, but I got it and he should have received it this morning."

"Are they coming up after dinner, then?"

"Yes."

The entire family gathered in the Snapes' sitting room after dinner to wish Howard a happy birthday. They had a wonderful evening of helping with the twins, playing games, and teasing Howard about being of age, now. There was some family business to cover as well.

Barbara started. "We've invited you to join the family a little at a time. Do you know how many kids without good homes there still are?"

Anthony said, "There's the O'Hares, Tommy and Pat. They're first and second year Gryffindors. Their uncle is going to retire from the Kenmare Kestrels' staff and take care of them, but he has to finish this year out or he will lose a lot of money on his contract."

"There's Becky Fawcett in Ravenclaw, too," said Carissa. "She's a fourth year, like me."

"Is everyone else in good shape?" asked Barbara.

Howard answered, "A lot of folks noticed what you were doing and a lot of kids found homes this winter."

Severus found his wife's hand and squeezed it, whispering into her ear, "Your idea took root in the hearts and minds of other people, my dear. Something else we can chalk to your credit." Barbara blushed and he continued aloud. "We don't want anyone left out this summer, but three will make this family a great deal larger, even if two won't be permanent. What say you?"

"I want to do it," said Alice. "There is plenty to go around, isn't there?"

Aunt Barbara got up to hug her. "Bless you, there's plenty for all of us. Can you all handle it, with house allegiances and everything?"

Anthony spoke for all of them. "We're all Hogwarts, aren't we? And beyond that, when we're home, we belong to Snape House."

Barbara and Severus looked at each other with blinking eyes. The motion was considered carried.

Howard stayed behind when the other kids left. "I wanted to thank you particularly, for the watch."

Severus shook his head. "It was from your parents, Howard. We found it in the boxes of personal effects that came from your home, and have kept it for you on their behalf."

"From my parents?"

Barbara nodded. "Remember to honor their memory."

"Can I ask something?"

"Of course," said Barbara and Severus together.

"Have you planned at all to adopt us, officially?"

Severus looked into the hopeful eyes for a moment before answering. "Yes, we discussed it at length, but we decided not to do so, for several reasons. The most important of the reasons is that we don't want to take credit for what your parents have done. They have raised fine young men and women and while we hope to guide you into the best way to follow their footsteps and realize their hopes, we don't want to let anyone forget that you have all come from great families in their own right."

Howard thought about it for a while and nodded his head. "I see what you mean." They hugged him and wished him a happy birthday again. Barbara kissed and mothered him as much as any newly of-age young wizard could stand and he went off toward the Slytherin common room.

Severus put his arm around his wife as they watched him go. "He's so much older than when he first became part of the family, already," Barbara said. "It's only been a year."

She sighed. "Severus, am I that much older since last year?"

"You are not a growing boy. You're my ageless wife."

He kissed her hair and tugged her back into their room so that he could shut the door.

"What about Anthony?"

Barbara grimmaced. "He seems fine. I guess you're right that he's just overtired from studying."

"What about Barbara?"

"What about her?"

"Is she over tired from a busy weekend?"

"What do you have in mind?"

He looked into her eyes. Her eyes sparkled in return.

"No," she said, "I'm not too tired for that."

A/N: Well, from here it's pretty much raising kids and living life, so I don't see myself updating much if at all. I know what happens next, but it's more of a family story than the sort of adventure Harry Potter stories should be. I have an epilogue that sort of points to where I see things going, and I may post it as the last chapter here, or a one shot so as to leave space for further chapters in this story.

Thank you, everyone who has read this, and everyone who has reviewed. Mark Darcy, excessivelyperky, and debjunk have been most kind and helpful.