Master Kelk raised his eyebrows when the acolyte told him the reason for the stranger's visit.

"You want to see who?" he spluttered in a manner most undignified for a Master.

"Arch Mage Lucinda sir," the man, Weasley, answered.

"What on earth do common wizards have need of her for?" Master Kelk asked, startled.

"Sir, it's a personal matter that I swore only to speak to the Arch Mage about," Weasley answered respectfully.

"I assure you boy, I have no desire to know why anyone would willingly call upon Arch Mage Lucinda. And I have no wish to hear any personal news you are delivering. Show him the way to the Arch Mage's chambers," Kelk said fervently to his acolyte who looked like his leader had just ordered him put to death. Trembling the acolyte left with a puzzled Weasley in tow.

Charlie looked about him. The Temple was a pretty affair. There were colourful hangings and statues everywhere and young acolytes were walking around in long green and white robes. The older priests were in yellow and orange and the Masters were mostly in blue. The young acolyte leading the way went to a door in the middle of the room and opened it. Charlie followed and was surprised to find himself in another part of the temple. This room was basically a conjoined temple, outfitted entirely in deep red. The wall hangings were in red, the carpet and curtains were all in red with curious symbols all over them. There were statues in here too and acolytes but these acolytes were all wearing jade. Their leaders were wearing burgundy and no Masters patrolled the floors like in the opposite temple.

Another acolyte, this one dressed in jade, approached Charlie and his guide. She spoke briefly to the terrified acolyte in green and white, who, after the conversation, gratefully hurried back out through the door.

"Mr Weasley?" the new acolyte asked. "My name is Marina. I am an acolyte for the Black Mages. You seek and audience with our Lady Arch Mage?"

Marina was very well spoken and had a soft voice. Charlie nodded.

"Yes please. I'm here with urgent news for the Arch Mage," he said.

"Come this way please. Perhaps her ladyship is expecting you," Marina said, turning and heading up a long spiral staircase in the middle of the room. They climbed for a long time, until Charlie's legs were quite sore, and then finally reached a simple, unmarked door. Marina drew a symbol on the door that burnt once and then faded. The door clicked open and they swept through.

Once inside Charlie was sure he was in the wrong place. There was a desk, made of dark mahogany wood with nothing on it. There were two chairs with comfortable looking cushions in front of the desk and a rigid, oak-wood, high-backed seat behind it. The walls were littered with maps and the like but nothing at all indicated that this was the home of the most powerful black mage in the world. Charlie felt like he'd walked into a school teacher's room.

"Forgive the appearance of the room. Her Ladyship has been away much. It's not very impressive, I know, but still…this is her home," Marina said fondly. She gestured one of the chairs. "Wait here. I will see if she is here."

Charlie sat down while Marina moved behind the desk and simply walked through the wall. It was a few minutes before she returned, smiling softly. "Her Ladyship will be with you momentarily," she announced before sweeping out the room, leaving Charlie quite alone.

True to her words a few moments later the wall stirred. First a furry head popped through. Charlie recognized the creature instantly, it was a Treasure Otter. He knew Summoner Lucinda had one Guardian, Finbarr Galedeep, a Treasure Otter. He assumed this was the Guardian.

Finbarr slinked his way through the room and up onto the table where he eyed Charlie for a moment and then grinned. There was no other word to describe it. The otter actually grinned, showing his jewel encrusted teeth.

"Welcome Mr Weasley," a soft, sultry voice sounded. Charlie dragged his eyes away from the smirking otter to view the Arch Mage of Black Mages, Lucinda.

She was a breathtaking young woman. Her jet black hair was bound in thousands of plaits that were folded in on other another, creating an exquisite cascade of curls down her back. The left hand side of her fringe was wavy and covered the left hand side of her face from the centre of her forehead, over her eye and to the very left-most point of her jaw. Her amber colored eyes were accentuated by the shimmering bronze eye-shadow and dark kohl she was wearing. She had a pale complexion but was by no means washed out. Her lips were the same shimmering bronze as her eyes.

She was wearing deep purple in a low-cut corset ensemble, decorated by glittering embroidery of oriental designs. The sleeves just tipped her shoulders and constituted very short, thick bands around her upper arm, leaving her arms bare. The bell of the dress was layer upon layer of shot silk alternating from deep royal purple to pale lilac, all in shot silk. Each layer, from the top, was shorter to allow the different colors to show through. The hem of the bell touched the ground at the front and swept behind her in a train.

Charlie rose to his feet and bowed formally. "Your Ladyship," he said politely.

Arch Mage Lucinda bowed back, using the curious Arch Mage's bow that Charlie had only seen since coming to this Temple. Then she straightened and sat down, indicating Charlie do the same.

"To what do I owe the pleasure, Mr Weasley?" she asked in her soft, husky voice.

"Please, call me Charlie. Mr Weasley is far too formal," Charlie laughed easily. The Arch Mage smiled.

"And I in turn, request you address me as Lulu," she countered. Charlie nodded in assent. Then he cleared his throat.

"Uh, I've come here on behalf of an organization I am involved with. An organization founded and led, until recently, by Albus Dumbledore," Charlie said.

"I see. You speak of the Order of the Phoenix," Lulu said, leaning back in her seat.

"Yes, you know of it?" Charlie asked.

"I certainly do. What need brings a member of the Order to my doorstep?" Lulu asked curiously.

"Albus' will," Charlie said. He put a copy of the will on Lulu's desk. "May I draw your attention to the eighth paragraph from the third page?"

Lulu delicately picked up the thick parchment and flicked through the sheaf's until she came across the relative statement. She read it quickly and arched a perfectly kept eyebrow.

"Am I to understand Albus Dumbledore requests my presence at Hogwarts School as a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher?" she asked.

"I understand, given your position, that this may seem an impossible task," Charlie started but Lulu shook her head.

"On the contrary, Charlie, Albus' direction gets me closer to my goal than I first thought. You may or may not be aware but I have been working for Albus for a number of years now. By placing me in the school Albus is placing the school under my protection. And what better way to protect the students than to teach them?" she asked, carefully folding the will.

"So…so you'll help out?" Charlie asked.

"If I can clear it with the new Head of the School, I assume Minerva McGonagall, then yes, I will certainly abide by my friend's wishes," Lulu nodded pensively. "Understand, Charlie, that this means I will be working more closely with the Order. Some of your members already know me from a few brief passages over the years and may give their opinion. But I hope this will not inconvenience the Order in any way."

"From what I can gather it's the general feeling of the Order that you would be welcome to work in closer proximity and intimacy with us, your ladyshi….Lulu," Charlie said.

"Very well then. Please inform your Order that I will present myself in one week's time. I must organize my own Order here first before I can be excused indefinitely from the Temple on a permanent status," Lulu said, rising. Charlie followed in suit.

"Of course, of course. One week then. I trust you know where to find us?" he asked jovially.

Lulu's face took on a strange, haunted expression. "You are still using the Grimmauld House?" she asked softly.

"Er…yes, we are. It now belongs to Harry you see…" Charlie trailed off as Lulu turned her back briefly.

"Very well. One week, Charlie. I looked forward to sharing your company then," she said.

"Of course. Thankyou Lulu," Charlie said, bowing. He turned and walked away. As he turned to look back at the door he found Lulu staring at a portrait on the wall. Though it was far away and he wasn't quite sure he thought it somehow looked like Sirius Black with his arm around a young, raven-haired girl with amber eyes.

Charlie didn't get a lengthy look though. Finbarr turned his sharp eyes on him and Charlie, feeling this was more than enough of a warning, turned and left.

Exactly a week later the Order of the Phoenix sat apprehensively in the lounge room of number 12 Grimmauld Place, London. This was formally the home to generations of the Black family, but when Sirius Black died he left everything to his cherished godson, Harry Potter, who had given the Order the full go ahead to continue using the hidden location as their headquarters.

Molly Weasley was in the kitchen, as usual, just making herself busy. Arthur was in the lounge, leaning against the mantelpiece above the fireplace. Lupin and Tonks were sitting on the couch. Mad Eye Moody was sitting on a bar stool in the corner. McGonagall was also present, along with Hagrid and Bill and Charlie Weasley. Bill was chatting idly to Lupin and Tonks, Charlie and Hagrid were talking about a new breed of dragons that Charlie's team had discovered in Romania.

At precisely seven minutes past eight in the evening there was a light tapping at the door. Everyone gave a start and Lupin rose and opened the door.

"Identify yourself," he said, feeling somewhat foolish. There was no way any amount of dark magic was going to take control of the mind of the Arch Mage of Black Mages. She could probably invent a new Killing Curse.

"My name is Lucinda, I am the Arch Mage of the Black Mages and my favorite color is lime green. You are Remus Lupin, werewolf and teacher and your favorite food is butterscotch pudding," the soft voice said seriously. These were key words agreed upon for Lulu's arrival, seeing as Death Eaters were watching the house like a hawk.

"Sorry about that your ladyship," Lupin said, opening the door fully to let her in. "Gotta be careful these days."

"Apology unnecessary, Remus," Lulu said as she walked inside. "I think it very smart to not trust anyone."

She was wearing midnight blue robes, so dark they were almost black. It was a one shoulder piece that was bunched up at the bust and then flowed down in the silkiest material imaginable. Small glittering white lotus flowers adorned the skirt of the gown and across her bare arms thick blue ribbons wrapped up, criss-crossing like a ballerina's ribbons, up to her elbows. She wore a pale blue cloak in comparison, that was plain and unadorned. Her hair was pulled back into a high pony and it tumbled down her back and over one shoulder in a myriad of glossy raven curls. Her fringe swept over her left eye as normal and a thick pale blue velvet headband decorated the lot.

Behind the Arch Mage bounded Finbarr, wearing a small fur lined coat to fight the chill. He wore a large blue collar that matched his mistress' dress and was watching everyone with an amused twinkle in his eye. His markings stood out pearly white against his dark brown fur but they were lined with sapphire blue.

Lulu sort of stood in the hallway until Arthur gave a start and then conjured a chair out of no where.

"Please, take a seat, Arch Mage," he offered.

Lulu sat down and Finbarr sat upright at her feet, still looking vaguely amused at the gathering.

"How was your journey?" Charlie asked after another moment. It seemed no one knew quite what to say to this newcomer. They could feel power radiating off her and it made them unsure.

But Lulu smiled and tilted her head to the side. "Quite enjoyable, I must say. I ran into a group of Death Eaters over the North Atlantic. You can't imagine my surprise, or theirs really."

"What happened?" McGonagall asked, looking alarmed.

Lulu gave a small chuckle and waved her hand airily. "I led them to shore. There's a bounty on my head, after all, I'm wanted by the Dark Lord almost as much as he wants young Harry Potter. So the Death Eaters were quite eager to give chase. As soon as I touched land Finbarr Apparated to me and we entered aggressive negotiations over the matter of my capture."

Charlie laughed. "Who won?" he asked.

"Well, I sit here before you, so you can imagine, I won that particular debate," Lulu grinned. She reached down and patted Finbarr's head. "Although, I must say, I hardly did anything. You'd think I never let Finbarr join in the fights the way he was performing. Three Death Eaters to himself. Was simply amusing to watch."

Finbarr grinned again, which made Charlie laugh again. "Nice one mate," he said to the Otter, who snickered.

Lulu looked up. "But I am being very rude. I am Lucinda, and I am indeed the Arch Mage but I wish you to address me simply as Lulu. It's a preferred endearment amongst friends and allies. And this, of course, is Finbarr Galedeep, Treasure Otter of the Ronso tribe and Guardian."

"Oh right! Lulu, this is Tonks, Arthur Weasley, Molly Weasley, Bill Weasley, you know Charlie, Rebeus Hagrid, Alastor Moody and of course, Minerva McGonagall," Lupin said, taking a quick turn around the room.

"Weasley, Weasley and more Weasleys?" Lulu laughed. "Quite the family affair, you must be proud of your sons."

"Oh, there's more," Arthur grinned. "Fred and George have just signed on a student teachers at Hogwarts too."

"And Ron and Ginny attend the school," Molly added.

Lulu raised her eyebrows. "Goodness. Quite impressive. One would rather hate to make enemies of the Weasley family. They're everywhere."

Silence descended for a minute while Lulu sat passively and watched the gathering. Finally McGonagall cleared her throat.

"I understand Charlie presented you with Albus' will?" she asked.

"Yes he did," Lulu nodded.

"And?" McGonagall asked.

"I readily agree, if you all do. Albus spoke of this plan to me once before, in a moment of reflection, should his demise be untimely. I think recent events propelled the plan into action at precisely the moment he envisioned," Lulu replied. "To be at Hogwarts, closer to the students and in particular, the Potter boy, whom we all want to see protected, will be of great benefit to me."

"Is teaching not… well, are you not above that?" Kingsley asked.

Lulu shook her head. "Certainly not. I, like my mentor Albus, take great pride in passing on learning to young minds. I should love for nothing greater."

"Well, then. It is agreed. Term starts September one," McGonagall said decisively. "If you could present yourself to the school at that time and then all will be as it may."

Lulu rose. "September first then."

"Will you not stay for dinner?" Molly asked.

Lulu smiled at her. "I am making everyone uneasy, Molly," she said.

"Not at all," Arthur shook his head. "It's just been a long time since anyone's seen you, Lulu. We never thought we'd have to call on you in this capacity."

"Well then, dinner would be lovely," Lulu smiled.