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    J.K. Rowling Has Posted Her Final Harry Potter Writing Of 2014

    Updated: Fans get a history of the Order of Merlin.

    J.K. Rowling has posted new Harry Potter writing on her website, Pottermore, for the last time this year.

    Here's the final riddle:

    Spoiler: The riddle reveals new info on the Order of Merlin:

    The Order of Merlin is awarded by the Wizengamot, an organisation that predates the Ministry of Magic and nowadays functions as a combination of court and parliament.

    The Order of Merlin, commemorating the most famous wizard of his time, has been given since the fifteenth century. Legend says that the green ribbon, on which the First Class Order hangs, is to reflect Merlin's Hogwarts house.

    The First Class Order is awarded 'for acts of outstanding bravery or distinction' in magic, the Second Class is awarded for 'achievement or endeavour beyond the ordinary' and the Third Class is given to those who 'have made a contribution to our store of knowledge or entertainment.'

    While nobody argued when Albus Dumbledore received his O.M. (First Class) for defeating the Dark Wizard Grindlewald, there was a good deal of muttering in the wizarding community when Cornelius Fudge, Minister for Magic, awarded himself an O.M. (First Class) for a career many considered less than distinguished.

    You can read the whole thing by logging into Pottermore, and solving the riddle.

    The eleventh riddle revealed a history of Draco Malfoy, and the fact that J.K. Rowling is "unverved" by his popularity among young girls.

    The tenth riddle revealed new info on the Inferi:

    The Inferi are zombie-like creatures who guard the locket Horcrux in Half-Blood Prince.

    Rowling writes:

    An Inferius (plural: Inferi) is a corpse that has been reanimated by a Dark Wizard's curse. It becomes a grisly puppet, and may be used as an expendable servant by the Dark Wizard in question.

    She continues: "An Inferius can only be destroyed by fire, for no spell has been found to render dead flesh impervious to burning."

    But Rowling also explains that Inferi are NOT zombies:

    Inferi have much in common with zombies, which are mentioned as separate creatures within Harry's world. I have several good reasons for not wishing to call the guardians of the locket Horcrux 'zombies'. Firstly, zombies are not part of British folklore, but associated with myths of Haiti and parts of Africa.

    Secondly, while zombies of the Vodou tradition can be nothing more than reanimated corpses, a separate but related tradition has it that the sorcerer uses part of their souls to sustain himself. This conflicted with my Horcrux story, and I did not wish to suggest that Voldemort had any more use for his Inferi than as guards of his Horcrux.

    "Lastly, to me, a zombie will always mean Michael Jackson in a bright red bomber jacket."