[HPforGrownups] Hogwarts romances (some SHIP)

[Karen Shepherd]

No: HPFGUIDX 34101

A couple thoughts (and maybe some answers?) on the subject of Lily and
James' ages when they got married...

First, 
> lucky_kari wrote:
> >We do know that it was very quickly out of Hogwarts because they were
> >dead without a few years after being together for at least two
> >years.

Then,
Penny & Bryce wrote:
> Huh?  Not sure what you mean here.  They were married for at least 2
> yrs
> if they were married before conceiving Harry, but I can't figure out
> how
> you're calculating a marriage date soon after leaving Hogwarts.  We
> don't know how old they were when they got married or had Harry ... so
> I
> can't see as it's possible to calculate.

Well we don't know for certain, but one can take a guess--a pretty
sketchy guess, and one probably resembling Swiss cheese, but one
nonetheless.

JKR has stated that Snape was 35-36 in GoF.  Going with the latter age
as well as the Harry-was-born-in-1980 theory, that means he was born
around 1958-59, depending on when his birthday falls.  He was at
Hogwarts with MWPP & Lily, and considering the animosity betweeen the
two groups I'm assuming that MWPP&L were in about the same year as
Snape.  It would be easier for the rivalry to heat up if they saw each
other in class every day or so (more opportunities for pranks on either
side. :->), and if there was a large age difference, would the older
party bother deliberately annoying the younger?  BTW, does JKR ever
mention Snape & MWPP ever having classes together?  If she does, I'm
assuming it would be in an off-handed comment by Black or Lupin.

Anyway, back to the theory.  Assuming Snape, Lily & James were the same
age, that means the three of them would have been 22-23 in 1981. 
Subtract two years for the assumption that L&J were married when Harry
was concieved, and you have an approximate age of (at most) 20-21 for
when they were married. Assuming that L&J graduated at the same time,
that gives a 2-3 year window where they could have been married.

I know, I'm going under a lot of assumptions here.  But even if you
argue an earlier/later year for Voldemort's fall, you'd still get the
same ages, just different birth years.  It's the other assumptions where
my theory collapses like a Meccano set without the nuts & bolts. :-)

Does anyone have any other tidbits from the canon that would help to
prove whether MWPP&L and Snape were the same/different ages?  I know she
mentions James and Lily beaing Head Boy and Girl, but I don't think she
specifies whether they held those titles during the same year.

Pick away!

--Karen Shepherd