J.K. Rowling's reposting of a Patronus-like animal goes viral

I admit that I have neve been in the key demographic of Harry Potter readers, having been born in the same year as the titular character and discovered the books in 2000. It doesn't stop me from often dreaming of coming across magic in real life, in the same way that I imagine I have some control of the Force as a Star Wars fan. I enjoy reenacting spells that they could have learned in Professor Flitwick's Charms class and there are Quidditch teams who compete in a very Muggle way. On January 30, J.K. Rowling took to X and identified a magical moment with the help of the Nature Is Amazing account.

Expecto Patronum

We all remember the mystery and excitement of the chapter in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows called "The Silver Doe." In the dark days after Harry is attacked at Godric's Hollow and has his wand broken in the process, he follows a mysterious, luminescent doe through the woods to the pool where the long sought-after Sword of Godric Gryffindor has been left. We learn much later that this was Severus Snapes' Patronus and he had left the sword for Harry to find.

The Nature is Amazing account on X posted the above video of a pure white deer and it's charming to see Rowling joke that "Someone's lost a Patronus." It would be tempting to come across this animal and pull over to see if it was a guide to a magical place.

In the comments, one person joked that Rowling has now confirmed that "a wizard of a witch can lose a patronus, which will wander along the roadside, lost, in plain sight to Muggles." Another remembered that Harry's mother and his least favorite professor were connected not only in friendship, but in the manifestation of a doe as each person's Patronus. "And now I'm thinking of Snape & Lilly and gonna go have a little cry." We know that Harry's Patronus is a stag like his father and it's amusing to note that Hermione Granger's fierce protector is a hairy otter, but I join the user who said "I would love to know what JK Rowling's patronus is."

Patronuses were first introduced in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban and were one of the things Harry chose to equip the members of Dumbledore's Army with in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Our thanks to the nature-lovers who spotted this lost doe.