Severus watched them go, and then he turned to Serenus. "If you want to socialize too, I will stay and watch the children."
"Are you sure?" Serenus regarded him questioningly. "Do you really want to be left alone with all five at once?"
"If any of them give me trouble, I will turn the troublesome one into a newt," Severus said, speaking loudly enough that all of the Snape brood could hear him, and Serenus chuckled.
"Very well, then. Good luck," he said as he pushed back his chair and rose, heading off to say hello to friends he had spotted in the crowd.