Apparently, the occupants of the formerly infamous village had fled ever since the mass hysteria at Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry occurred.
The only sounds around him were his footsteps, as well as the couhging of the frail-looking Ministry representatives that accompanied him from the Ministry of Magic.
They approached a pair of enormous, wrought iron gates topped with winged boars.
Rufus pulled out his wand and raised it into the air. Instantly, silvery fog erupted from the tip of his wand and materialized in mid-air. With a flap of its wings, the Patronus glided into the air and disappeared into the castle.
Moments later, scurrying footsteps emerged from the castle. With a creak, the gates budged open and the head of a sallow-skinned, burgundy-haired woman popped out.
"Ah, Minister"
Rufus raised his eyebrow curiously.
"You're the new caretaker?" he asked.
The formidable-looking woman nodded vigorously and stepped back to let them in.
"Indeed, Minister." she grunted.
"But where is dear Argus?" said Rufus, taking a step inside and pocketing his wand.
The caretaker brushed soot of her frayed dress robes and said, "I'm afriad to say Mr. Filch has resigned from his job, and so did the librarian"
"Oh and by the way, you can call me Rubella. Rubella Blanche." she added imperiously.
Rufus merely shrugged.
Ten minutes later they were standing in front of another pair of wooden doors with a brass, Griffin knocker.
Rubella pushed open the door and stuck her head inside.
"Headmistress, the Minister has arrived." she muttered in an audible whisper.
"Yes, please." said a reluctant voice from inside.
Rufus proceeded into the office after ordering his representatives to stay outside.
Rubella closed the office doors as soon as Rufus lowered himself on a seat across the desk where a frail-looking witch with her graying hair wrapped in a tight bun sat muttering to herself as she wrote down notes.
"Gorgeous day, Minerva. Well - have you finalized a decision yet?" began Rufus.
MInerva McGonagall's eyes roved around the office once and landed on the Minister's ones as though she only realized he was there.
"The governors agreed to let me do the decision." she muttered stiffly.
Rufus' eyes lit up. "And"
"I have decided to let the school remain open." McGonagall told him sternly.
Rufus looked taken aback. "And do you believe that students will return to this school after all that"
McGonagall shot him a firm look and said in a calm voice that showed every sign of hatred, "The school will not close unless none of the students are loyal to Dumbledore anymore"
Rufus let out a scornful laugh. "Dumbledore is dead." he murmured as though it was a practical joke. "However, Minerva, i must insist that you accept further protection and tighter security from the Ministry"
McGonagall's nostrils flared. "I am not agreeing with the interfering of the Ministry, judging by the fact that some of them are total hypocrites"
Rufus looked highly affronted. He shot up from his seat like a bullet, dusted dirt off his traveling cloak and glared at McGonagall.
"Until we meet next time." he mumbled and left.
The serpentine house popped out from the deserted lot between Numbers eleven and thirteen in an instant.
Harry Potter stood at the top of the front steps, facing the frayed front door coiled with snakes.
He had refused to visit this very place before, and he was unaware of the reason why he was here at this very hour. Grimmauld Place showed every signs of the former occupant's neglect. The shutters were hanging loose, and so was the front door that was hanging from its hinges.
He took a swig of Felix Felicis this very morning, and his instincts brought him to this very place.
The glutinous, shimmering potion was now kept in a pile of old socks in his trunk at Privet Drive.
He left this morning, with the Dursleys unaware of where he was headed to. None of them seemed to eager to utter a word at him, probably terrified by the fact that in a day's time, he was turning seventeen, officially capable of using magic outside school.
He entered the house, wandered through the deserted corridor and inside one of the bedrooms.
Without knowing what he was doing, his hand found a handle on one of the drawers and pulled.
Inside was a crumpled piece of paper which he eagerly took and unfurled. Words on the note read:
Mundungus Fletcher has been here. With him is a locket that you might find interesting. The real Horcrux you need.
He crumpled the note in his hands, aware of the fact that the note contained the very answer to his first unsolved problem.
He threw the note aside, bolted outside the house and stopped in a halt at the edge of the deserted street. He raised his wand into the air.
With a screech, a violently purple, triple-decker bus appeared in front of the curb.
His mind buzzing with questions, Harry entered the Knight Bus and lowered himself on one of the empty beds.
The irritable-looking driver, Ernie Prang, sneered at him from the driver's seat.
"Hi, Ernie." said Harry. "How's Stan"
Ernie glared at him. "Still in Azkaban"
"Well then, who's your new conductor?" said Harry curiously.
A man from behind him stepped forward. He was a tall, musclely wizard in a furry, gray cloak. His face looked rather young but agitated. His hair was an attractive, golden brown.
"I'm the temporary conductor, Jefferson Jarfies." he muttered and beamed broadly.
Harry forced a grin and said, "Er...do you - by any chance - know where the nearest port is that will take me too Azkaban"
Jefferson looked suspicious. "Why would you want to go there? It doesnt look like a perfect place for a young wizard"
Harry swallowed. "I have to visit a friend"
Jefferson eyed him closely and said, "The nearest Port is the Muggle port - Port Sheffield - the Knight Bus will take you there."
Until the second chapter! Thanks a lot for reading this!