[HPforGrownups] FOUND IT: Charlie's No. 2

[Amanda Geist]

No: HPFGUIDX 53480

Steve crowed, re: his confirmation that Bill is the oldest Weasley child:

> FOUND IT:
> PoA; Am. PB., Chapter 'Quidditch Final', Pg 301 - "Gryffindor hadn't
> won the Quiiditch Cup since the legendary Charlie Weasley (Ron's
> second oldest brother) have been Seeker."
>
> This would confirm that indeed Bill is the oldest brother.

It would confirm only that he is indeed the oldest brother *now,* at the
moment. I happen to be a "missing Weasley child" adherent (and, relatedly, a
"seventh-son Ron" follower), and so I must devil's advocate and point this
out.

For one, Ron may not know there was an older sibling who was killed. I
mentioned this a while back; families handle tragedy differently. While my
own brother, who died when I was very young, was not a taboo subject, I have
a friend whose father was killed when she was a baby, and her family never
discussed it *at all.* It was not mentioned. It was suppressed. The only
reason her younger sisters even know about it, is that they asked why their
last name was different from my friend's and her brother's. So, Ron may well
believe that Bill is the oldest, and that Charlie is the second-oldest.

For another, even if Ron knows he lost a sibling, Charlie *is* the
second-oldest now. From my own experience: the ranking in my family went
Rankin, Tommy, Kelley, then me. Kelley died when I was four. To say that
Tommy is my closest brother in age, or to say that I have two brothers, is
correct. That is the fact at the moment.

The "current" aspect of the quote in the book, therefore, does not make it
clear beyond all doubt that there may have been another Weasley child older
than Bill.

~Amanda