J.K. Rowling Reveals New Magical Houses, So Time To Get Re-Sorted

Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them is hitting theaters soon. And while we're excited about that release, the build-up is also getting good. Case in point: the new magical fiction from J.K. Rowling herself over on Pottermore. Today's edition: An original tale of how North America's witchcraft and wizarding school, Ilvermorny, began. As with the Hogwarts mythology, Ilvermorny is rooted in intricate twists and turns of fate, love, betrayal, and of course, magic. If you want to know more about it, definitely watch the teaser trailer below, and read Rowling's entire new tale over on the Pottermore site.

Personally though, the part we got stuck on with the release of the latest story is the fact that the iconic author named four new houses with the creation of Ilvermorny. On top of that, she also bequeathed the world with a new sorting ceremony ritual. Turns out: There's only one sorting hat, and it lives at Hogwarts. So Ilvermorny has its own way of doing things. "While the rest of the school watches from the circular balcony overhead, new students file into the round entrance hall," Rowling explains. "They stand around the walls and, one by one, are called to stand on the symbol of the Gordian Knot set into the middle of the stone floor. In silence the school then waits for the enchanted carvings to react." From there, each student is called to their houses by the carvings of the creatures associated to their house of destiny: Horned Serpent (represented by a "great horned river serpent with a jewel set into its forehead"), Pukwudgie ("a short, grey-faced, large-eared creature"), Thunderbird (a creature that "can create storms as it flies") and Wampus ("a magical, panther-like creature that is fast, strong and almost impossible to kill"). "If the Horned Serpent wants the student, the crystal set into its forehead will light up. If the Wampus wants the student, it roars. The Thunderbird signifies its approval by beating its wings, and the Pukwudgie will raise its arrow into the air," goes the process. While we're not quite yet sure which house archetypes map to the Hogwarts originals, hopefully this isn't the last we'll hear of Ilvermorny. Color us officially intrigued.