"That's a strange motto." Harry said quietly, gazing at the writing.

Looking at it gave him a strange feeling, like a nervous lurch in his stomach. After a short moment of silence, Harry looked up at Draco. He had to ask, but doing it made him feel rather uncomfortable. The man was after all his father.

"Can we really believe this, Malfoy? I mean your father has been known to lie..."

"He had no reason to lie about this, Potter." Draco said simply. "Besides, it took him a while before he remembered anything about the guy. Like I said, for many years he was almost like a ghost. It may not be much but at least we have a lead now."

Harry nodded and picked up the scrolls. With an earnest look he passed them to Draco, who took them looking quite surprised.

"You keep these safe. I will ask some of my trusted people to investigate the Pyrites family. Hopefully, we will find something soon. I don't think you discovering these in a Death Eater hiding place and the recent events are a coincidence."

"Neither do I. If a Pyrites family member came back to light, then we are on uncharted territory. We know nothing about who they are or what they are capable of." Draco said darkly.

***

Later that week, Harry, Ginny and Ron were having dinner together at Harry and Ginny's new place. They had invited Hermione to join them, but she had refused saying she had to work overtime.

"I think she hopes work will drown her mind enough to stop thinking about him." Ginny sighed.

"She always liked to work. I'm sure she's fine." Ron said through a mouthful of food.

Ginny clicked her tongue, giving her brother a scathing look. He had always been way too oblivious for his own good. That is probably why he never ended up with Hermione, Ginny realized. At least he was happy enough with Lavender. She was simple enough for his taste.

'What about the other stupid one of the party?" Ginny said, looking at Harry expectantly.

"The bloody idiot keeps getting himself into trouble." Harry sighed wearily. "Once, he came back so badly hurt that it took two days for him to get better. Blaise was so furious I thought he might strangle him first. He even threatened Malfoy that next time he shows up looking like that, he will refuse to heal him and let him bleed to death."

"I see him capable of doing that." Ron said pointedly.

"Yeah, me too." Harry said with a nervous smile.

He avoided mentioning his recent meeting with Draco. For some reason, he preferred to keep it a secret for now. There were still so many unknown variables to the story.

The three of them spent the rest of the time talking about something else, when suddenly a tap came from the sitting room. Ginny got up to check and came back holding a letter. The look on her face was serious.

"It's for you, from... Narcissa Malfoy." Ginny said quietly, looking at Harry.

Harry and Ron both chocked on their food. Ginny placed the letter on the table, and they all stared at it apprehensively.

"I think you should open it." Ginny nudged Harry.

"Alright." Harry said, picking it up and opening it with trembling hands.

"What does it say?" Ron asked, craning his neck trying to see.

"She is inviting us to a ball." Harry said in a tone of surprise, his eyebrows shooting up. "Apparently she is throwing a Halloween ball on the 31st at the Malfoy Manor and is inviting all of us to attend."

"That's nice of her." Ginny said, snatching the letter from Harry's hand. "Oh, how lovely. It is to be a masked ball." Ginny exclaimed excitedly, then got to her feet. "I'll go and tell Hermione, she should be home by now."

"Ginny, wait." Harry stopped her. "I think we shouldn't go, or at least I think Hermione shouldn't."

"And why is that? Because of Malfoy?" Ginny said, raising her perfect eyebrows at her husband.

"That and... well it is the Manor, Ginny. You know very well what she went through there." Harry said, pushing a hand through his hair, glancing at Ron for support.

"Yeah, Gin, I think Harry is right." Ron piped up quickly.

"But she doesn't remember any of it." Ginny threw her hands in the air with an exasperated huff. "She doesn't know what happened, so she will be fine. And besides, I think it should be up to her whether she goes or not. Hermione is old enough to make her own decisions."

Saying that, she turned on her heels and stomped out of the room. Harry and Ron exchanged looks, then sighed in unison.

Despite Ginny's ardent opposition, Harry decided to call on Narcissa. That is why, early the next morning, he scribbled a note and sent it by owl, letting Narcissa know he would be at the Manor after lunch. A reply came soon after that, containing Narcissa's elegant writing. The note was informing Harry she would be waiting for him at 2PM and that the wards will allow him to enter the property.

One cannot expect anything else from the Malfoys. They with their aristocratic manners. Harry scoffed to himself after reading the note.

Nevertheless, he was punctual to the second. At 2PM sharp he was knocking on the front door of Malfoy Manor, waiting to be allowed inside. A nicely dressed house elf appeared and guided him through the imposing house. To Harry's surprise, the Manor looked quite different from the last time he had seen it. It was completely refurbished, and it had a more welcoming air. Harry and the house elf walked in silence until they reached a comfortably sized sitting room. There, Narcissa Malfoy was sitting on a sofa, quietly enjoying a cup of tea.

When she saw Harry, she got up with the elegance and grace of a feline, making Harry immediately think of Draco. The resemblance between mother and son was indeed striking.

"Thank you for coming." Narcissa said with a pleasant smile, inviting Harry to take a sit. "That would be all." She addressed the house elf, who bowed and disappeared with a soft popping noise.

Narcissa then proceeded to pouring Harry a cup of tea. He thanked her and took the cup in both his hands, fumbling with his fingers on the handle.

"I assume you are here to discuss my invitation to the ball?" Narcissa said slowly, fixing her eyes on him.

"Y-yes. I admit it was rather sudden."

"It took me a while to decide whether to have the ball or not. In the end, I decided it would be a good opportunity to see my son and his friends." She paused before continuing. "I already saw my son a while ago." Narcissa said, calmly sipping from her cup. "He came here to search for a book in the library, and I told him about my plan to throw a ball. Needless to say he wasn't ecstatic."

"I'm sure he wasn't." Harry nodded.

"What I would like to know is, from your recent experience with him, do you think he will come? Perhaps if Miss Granger were to come as well?" Narcissa said, glancing sideways at Harry.

Her icy blue eyes made Harry shiver slightly. He owed this woman his life in a manner of speaking, but she was still making him feel intimidated. Harry coughed, clearing his throat in order to bide his time.

"I wouldn't bet on it, Mrs. Malfoy. The guy is stubborn as an ox and Hermione... well let us just say that it's a miracle if she doesn't kill him on sight. They haven't parted on such good terms, as you may already know." Harry signed, ruffling his hair.

"I see. That is too bad indeed." Narcissa Malfoy said quietly. "He hasn't told me much about his relationship with Miss Granger, but when I saw him I could feel something wasn't quite right with him."

"Perhaps because he was brooding more so than usual?" Harry said, choking on his tea at the look on Narcissa's face. He half expected her to shoot him a glare, but instead she smiled, quite pleased with herself.

"I believe you're right, Mr. Potter. He did look more sullen than usual. At first I thought it was work related, but your statement just now pointed me into the right direction." She said, placing the cup gently on a small table in front of the sofa. "I'm expecting you at the party then?"

"I don't know what to say, Mrs. Malfoy." Harry hesitated placing his cup beside Narcissa's.

"Nevertheless, my invitation still stands, Mr. Potter. You are all welcomed." With that she nodded, and Harry took the que to leave. He got up and followed the house elf who appeared to escort him out. When he reached the door to the sitting room, though, he stopped suddenly.

"Mrs. Malfoy, if I may be allowed one question." Harry said, turning halfway to look at Narcissa.

"Of course." She said, raising her eyebrows in surprise.

"Have you ever heard about someone called Pyrites?"

Narcissa thought for a moment, then shook her head slowly, her eyebrows knitted in a small frown.

"I don't believe I have. It is the first time I am hearing the name."

"I see. Thank you for your time, Mrs. Malfoy."

Thank you for reading this story! I hope you're waiting eagerly for the ball. If so, stay tuned for the next chapters ;) Until then, have a wonderful day! ^_^ <333