As part of an overhaul of J.K. Rowling’s pottermore.com, the author has written a new story about the history of Harry Potter’s family, according to The Hollywood Reporter. A statement from website says that the story “sheds unexpected new light on the origins of the Potter family name, delves into Harry’s ancestry, [and] explains how his grandfather quadrupled the family’s fortune and how the Invisibility Cloak became a family heirloom.”
Harry Potter fans know that the Invisibility Cloak is one of the Deathly Hallows, a collection of rare magical artifacts that, when combined, make one a master of death. It always seemed a little weird that Harry happened to be handed down such an infamous part of magical lore from his father, so we’re happy to have a story to fill in the blanks. Of course, Harry was always pretty lucky in the gift department, also snagging the Marauder’s Map, a Firebolt broomstick, and the Potions book marked up by the Half-Blood Prince during his time at Hogwarts. (The jury is still out on whether that last one was a good or bad thing: You really have to weigh getting a good grade against suddenly having the ability to exsanguinate your classmates.)
Aside from new writing by Rowling, the revamped site’s coolest new feature seems to be “reporting and features by the Pottermore Correspondent, a journalist dedicated to reporting on all the latest updates going on in the Wizarding World.” This correspondent will report on the upcoming Potter-verse film Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them and the stage play Harry Potter And The Cursed Child, which is set to open in London in 2016. While Muggle-based news is well and good, we’re hoping that the correspondent also reports on the progress of the House-Elf Liberation Front, where to find the best butterbeer for the fewest gallions, or why the hell Dementors are hired as federal employees.