If the noise didn't stop soon he was going to make sure there was hell to pay. The shrieks and yelling and intermediate bangs had aggravated his headache until he thought his head was going to explode. Why couldn't they all be quiet like Viviane or Nimue?

Severus Snape sighed as he leaned back in his desk chair. Sometimes he thought that his children would be the death of him, not that 19 year old Viviane, or even Nimue, who at 13 was his youngest, had ever caused any trouble. No, it was the three in the middle that Severus was convinced were going to send him into an early grave. He grimaced as he heard another shriek from the room above him, and then sighed in resignation. He didn't doubt that Kamen, his only son, had somehow managed to provoke his sisters in some way, and was probably now either desperately trying to stay out of their way or was suffering from some form of revenge.

Severus slowly got up from his desk, trying to remember if his head had ever throbbed like this before. He reached the door to his study just has he heard a thundering on the stairs. As he opened the door to the hallway he narrowly avoided being run over as Kamen ran past, closely followed by two of his sisters. At that moment Nimue poked her head around the corner, as she looked down the hallway after her screaming siblings Severus caught her eye. Giving her a pointed look he started "Do you know..."

Nimue shrugged her shoulders, "Do I ever know how he gets them going?"

Another sigh, as much as he didn't feel like confronting his children at the moment, it looked like it would be the only way to gain some peace and quiet in his house. Severus strode purposefully down the hallway till he came to the sitting room where he could hear his daughters yelling at Kamen.

"Give it back Kamen!"

"If you don't give it back right now I'm gonna throw so many curses at you that..."

"You know perfectly well that there will be no curse throwing under my roof."

The three figures in front of him froze as Severus continued, "Considering such an empty threat, if ever carried out, is prohibited under the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery, it would be a very good way of getting yourselves expelled. Although that is nothing compared to what you will face if I ever find out you have been hexing one another."

"Come on Dad, you know I didn't really mean it."

Severus turned his cold gaze on the tall red head who had spoken, "then I suggest that you think before you speak next time Adelaide."

He saw her cringe slightly when he used her given name, something he only did when he was in a less than good mood, clear evidence that the three of them had pushed the limits a little too far this time. Her twin sister, who matched Adelaide in height and figure, but not in coloring, spoke up, "Dad, it's really not our fault. Kamen," she shot her brother a murderous glare "took my diary out of my room and he won't give it back!"

"Right now I don't care who took what." Severus' cold gaze took on the now subdued trio standing before him, "what I care about is that the three of you have been running around inside all afternoon, screaming and acting extremely childish after I told you this morning that I needed quiet today because I am trying to get some work done. Now, either you take it outside or stay in here and be quiet." All this was said with a deadly calm in his voice that was almost worse to his children than when he yelled. Almost. Severus turned and walked back out of the room, but paused at the door long enough to say, "Kamen, giver your sister her diary back."

Adelaide, more commonly called Dierna, turned to look at Kamen. She put her hands on her hips, unconsciously mimicking the stance their mother took when she was angry, her smoky green eyes were smoldering and her auburn curls shook slightly with suppressed rage. Kamen decided that he definitely did not want to face Dierna when she looked like that. Even though she was half a foot shorter than him she still made a formidable opponent. He turned, only to find himself facing the same image from Dierna's twin Serena. Except that Serena possessed her father's black eyes and straight black hair. With the deep tan of her skin she looked more Mediterranean than like their father's "English Rose" as he called her, a play on her full name, which was Serena Rose.

Serena extended her hand slowly. "Give me my diary now!" She drew every word out slowly, the icy tone in her voice alerted Kamen to the fact that she was absolutely furious with him.

Kamen reluctantly handed the diary over, and tried to keep his voice low so that they wouldn't attract their father's attention again, "Come on Ser! It's my duty as your older brother to keep you on your toes." He threw his sisters his lopsided grin that most of the girls in town melted over; combined with his black hair and eyes, and his tan skin, along with his 6'2" athletic frame he cut an incredibly good looking figure. His sisters were not impressed. He jumped slightly when he felt Dierna reach up and smack him across the back of his head.

"Ow! Hey, what was that for?!" Kamen turned to glare at Dierna.

"That was for getting Dad mad at all of us." She glared right back at him.

"How was I supposed to know he was in a bad mood today!?" Kamen sounded hurt, "it's not as if I was intentionally trying to get you into trouble!"

Kamen could've sworn he could feel the glares Dierna and Serena sent him as much as he saw them.

"Keep it down." Serena hissed at Kamen, "I don't want Dad coming in here again, because if he does, we're all probably gonna end up grounded."

"Yeah, nice going Kamen, I still have to ask Dad if I can go out with Stefan tonight." Dierna continued to glare at her brother.

"Than I suggest that you wait for an hour or two and give him a chance to cool down little sister," Kamen put on an innocent face, "I'm gonna go outside to practice some quidditch, would either of you like to join me?" He took in the icy glares from both girls and grinned widely, "No takers? Then I'll see you two later."

Kamen went out of the double doors that led from the sitting room out to the wide back yard, which supported a large open field speckled with wild flowers bordered by large shade trees. It was where Kamen, Dierna, and Serena, who were all on their house quidditch team usually practiced together.

Dierna and Serena turned and left in the opposite direction, exiting through the large dark wood door, which led into the main hallway of the large stone house. The other rooms in the hallway were their father's study, the library and a larger living room. At the end of the hallway was the entrance foyer that contained the stairway up to the second story of the house, along with the entrance to the dining room and kitchen.

The twins walked down the hallway in silence, taking extra care not to make any noise when they passed the door to their father's study. They went up the stairs in the foyer and turned to the right at the top. They went to the end of the hallway where the room that they shared was. As soon as they entered the room Serena let out a sigh of relief.

"At least we made it up here without incident, right Dierna?"

"Hmpf! At least you don't have to go back down there and ask him if it's ok to go out with your boyfriend tonight"

Serena flopped down on her bed, which was a tall four poster hung with dark blue curtains. Dierna collapsed onto her matching bed and rolled over on her back and stared at the underside of her canopy.

"I hate asking him if I can go out when he's in a bad mood; he's much more likely to say no."

"Don't worry about it, he almost always says no when you ask to go out" Serena looked over at her sister, "you know you're his favorite", her black eyes sparkled mischievously as she said the last part.

Dierna quickly sat up and aimed a pillow at her sister hitting her square in the face, the pillows continued to fly until both sisters collapsed in a fit of giggles. This was a habit that the two sisters had. Dierna was much more social than Serena, and during the summer she went out with her boyfriend, Stefan, several times during the week. Whenever their father was in a bad mood, she dreaded asking him if she could go out, mainly because he usually said no when he wasn't in a good mood. Not that it happened like that very often.

Severus' children had never feared them like the rest of his students had. He was, to a very small extent, approachable and loving to his children, but when he was displeased with them it was to their benefit to stay out of his way. He was quick to anger, but also quick to forgive, unlike their mother who was much more easy going. Ironically he was the parent that his children usually ran to when they were upset, but he was also the disciplinarian in the family. Whenever Dierna was apprehensive about asking him something Serena would make some joke about how Dierna was the obvious favorite, mainly because Dierna ended up in trouble much more often than any of the other four Snape children ever had.

Dierna fell back on her bed as she tried to regain her breath after laughing so hard. She closed her eyes for a moment as she calmed down and tried to gather her thoughts. She sat up on her bed and gazed moodily out the large window across from her.

"I might as well go back down there and get this over with"

"Why don't you just ask Mum instead?"

"Because I already did, and she said I had to ask Dad."

Serena sat up on her bed and tilted her head to one side as she looked at her sister, "Go ahead, I'll be up here for moral support if you need it afterwards." She then retrieved a book from her nightstand and walked over to the deep window seat that was bordered by long blue curtains. "Don't worry hon. I'm sure everything will be alright."

Dierna gave her sister a grateful look before she headed back out the door and down the stairs. When she reached the bottom of the stairs she quickly slipped into the library first where she saw Nimue perched on one of the sofas reading.

"Do you know if Dad has calmed down any?"

Nimue looked up at her sister and tilted her head to the side, a habit that all of the Snape girls had inherited from their mother, "I'm not sure, but he hasn't come out of his study since you and Serena went upstairs, which means that he might be in a better mood by now."

"That wasn't exactly what I wanted to hear you know," Dierna spoke softly as she moved over to the fireplace and started adjusting her clothing and hair while she looked in the mirror that hung on the wall. Years of getting in trouble and talking her way around her father had taught Dierna that a neat appearance would get her a lot farther when her dad was in a bad mood.

"You look fine Dierna, besides, Dad really likes Stefan, you don't have anything to worry about." The look on Nimue's face was older than her 13 years; her perception of the situation was amazing. Dierna shook her head; sometimes her little sister's amount of wisdom absolutely amazed her. She sighed, and shook out her curls, trying to clear her mind before she faced her father.

"Thanks little sis. I guess I might as well get this over with."

Dierna exited the library and continued down the hall till she reached the door to her father's study. She took a deep breath before she raised her hand and knocked on the dark, polished surface.

"Enter."

Another deep breath before she slowly opened the door and took a tentative step into the room. It was decidedly masculine in décor with dark green curtains and leather furniture. Severus looked up from the papers on his desk and motioned for Dierna to come in, he gestured her over to the window seat that was behind his desk and turned his own chair around to face her. Dierna took her seat and looked at her father, trying to gauge exactly what kind of mood he was in.

"What is it Bright Eyes?"

Dierna relaxed considerably when her father used his pet name for her. "Dad, Stefan wanted me to go out with him tonight, can I go?"

Severus leaned back in his chair and smiled slightly, he honestly liked the young man that was Dierna's boyfriend. He had just graduated from Hogwarts this year and was now working for the ministry. The fact that both Stefan's family and the Snapes live just outside of Hogsmead had made it convenient for Dierna and Stefan to continue seeing each other, even though he had graduated.

"You will of course be in by 11."

Dierna rolled her eyes, "Come on Dad, it's the summer! Curfew at 2?"

Severus raised an eyebrow, "Who's setting the rules here? I was under the impression that that was my job."

Dierna smiled and drew her knees up to her chest as she reached with one hand to push a stray curl behind her ear. She was constantly matching wits with her father, and although she very rarely came out on top she still enjoyed their amiable banter. "Now Dad, be fair, I will barely get to see Stefan once school starts again." She pouted slightly and put on her best angelic face.

"You can have till midnight, no later."

"But Dad..."

"I said midnight, that's final." He gave her the pointed look that the Snape children had learned was usually their one and only warning that they were about to push things too far.

Dierna thought quickly, he seemed like he was in a good mood, maybe she could push him just a little further...

"Please Dad, can't we just have a little longer, please..."

Severus looked at his daughter for a long moment, he had been rather hard on her and her siblings earlier, maybe this once...

"You will be in by 12:30; one minute late and you'll be grounded until school starts. Do I make myself clear?"

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!" Dierna threw herself at her father and hugged him tightly, "I promise I'll be in on time."

Severus allowed himself to smile at how radiantly happy his daughter looked, "if he's taking you out to dinner you should probably go get ready." His smile widened at the look of surprise on Dierna's face when she checked her watch and squealed at how late it already was. Severus stood up and leaned down to plant a kiss on the top of his daughter's head, "have fun Bright Eyes, and make sure you're home on time."

"I will Dad." Dierna happily ran out of the study and back upstairs to get ready to go out. Severus was about to go back to work when he noticed his wife standing in the doorway.

"I saw what you did Severus Snape, extending the curfew you imposed, are you?"

Severus smiled as he quickly crossed the room to embrace his wife.

Morgan Snape was a petit woman, with long, curly brown hair that cascaded around her shoulders and the most amazing large brown eyes Severus had ever seen, he swore could lose himself in those eyes forever. She went happily into her husband's embrace, after twenty years of marriage she loved him more than ever.

"Did you know love, that you're a complete pushover when it comes to our daughters?" Morgan smiled wickedly as she playfully accused her husband. Severus looked down at his wife, the woman he loved more than life itself, and attempted to sound hurt at her mention of his softness, "Now wherever did you get an idea like that my dear?"

Morgan leaned further into her husband's embrace as she chuckled softly, "I don't know love, maybe it's the fact that they've been working you over for years. Although I don't blame them, your curfew is ridiculously early."

"I see absolutely no reason for my teenage daughters to be out at all hours of the night..."

"Now really Sev, 11 is hardly late, you could at least extend their curfew till midnight."

"Really," Severus stood back and crossed his arms over his chest, "and what was your curfew when you were sixteen, my dear?"

Morgan shot him a positively wicked grin, "During the summer I didn't have to be in till 1, and you can see how well I turned out. Really Sev, you worry far too much. When the girls go out they're usually in a large group and all of their other friends have a later curfew. Would it kill you relax a little?"

Severus raised an eyebrow as he looked down at his wife, "I thought that we had agreed I would set curfew and you would not interfere with my decision."

Morgan widened her eyes in innocence as she tried not to smile at her husband's stern look, she was just as capable at working him over as her daughters were, "Sev, I'm not interfering, I'm just offering my opinion, you don't have to change your rules for me. I just thought that you would like to know that every other teenager in Hogsmeade has a later curfew than our children."

"I know what you're doing, and it's not going to work," Severus leaned in closer to his wife, taking advantage of the large height difference between them, "besides, why should I take advice from a Gryffindor?"

Morgan took her characteristic defensive stance and put her hands on her hips, "the fact that I was in Gryffindor didn't seem to bother you too much when you asked me to marry you so I don't know why you insist on bringing it up every time we disagree as a reason for why you don't like my side of the argument. Honestly Sev, that's probably the emptiest excuse that you could come up with."

She narrowed her eyes as she saw that Sev was trying his best not to laugh at her, "Why do I let you provoke me like that every time?!"

Severus allowed himself to laugh at his wife's outburst, "Because darling, I know exactly what it takes to get your feathers ruffled."

Morgan rolled her eyes, "you do know how to get me going, although I should think that you would have learned by now that it is not prudent to provoke your wife. But, will you at least consider extending the kids' curfew, Sev?"

"I will consider it, but I make no promises."

"As long as you'll consider it," Morgan drew her husband in close and kissed him briefly. "Now, I have to go get some work done, my lesson plans aren't going to write themselves."

Severus smiled as his wife left the room. It had been one of the happiest days of his life when she had started teaching at Hogwarts. It meant that they never had to be separated from each other, which hadn't been the case in the first few years of their marriage. Severus and Morgan had married nearly four years before Voldemort had been defeated for a second time. During the time period between their marriage and the downfall of the dark lord they had been forced to live apart. Severus had to keep teaching and it had been easier for Morgan and Viviane, who was the product of their first year of marriage, to remain at their home in Hogsmead.

With the birth of Kamen in their third year of marriage and the twins the year after that, the separation became increasing hard for the Snape family to endure. With the defeat of Voldamort, there had been a heavy casualty list at Hogwarts. Along with the loss of Dumbledore, several other teachers had died in the final battle. One of the teaching positions that had been left open was that of Ancient Runes. Morgan had been asked to fill the position. This ensured that the Snape family no longer had to be separated. Although it took quite a bit of work and compromise, the entire Snape family moved into Hogwarts during the school year, allowing Severus to play a much larger roll in the lives of his children than he had in the preceding four years.

Severus sat back down at his desk and began unthinkingly stacking papers as he thought about the years his family had spent at Hogwarts before any of his children had been old enough to be students there. He smiled at the memories. I had been an interesting experience to say the least. Having several small children running around had made it a real challenge for Morgan and him to get lesson plans and grading done, but it had been worth the stressful workload. Severus delighted in every aspect of his children's lives as they were growing up. Although having them at Hogwarts had been difficult, he couldn't imagine how empty his life would have seemed if the children had continued to live in Hogsmead.

Severus sighed as he focused once again on the work in front of him. The start of term was two weeks away, which meant that the teaching staff was expected to be back at Hogwarts early in the next week. He liked to have is lesson plans done well in advance, which meant that there was a lot of work left for him to get done.