Weasleys' ages (still)

[capehoneysuckle]

No: HPFGUIDX 92346

Once more into the breach!
It seems that we all agree that JKR has difficulties with numbers here
and there. She has carefully thought out her plots, but numbers and
dates that are not important to the plot are a bit fuzzy in her mind.
That said, I think that the conflicting canon regarding the ages of
Bill and Charlie Weasley could be resolved by several bits being
close, but not exact. (Close enough, in JKR's mind)

Here are the relevant quotes:

1) Oliver Wood's speech before the first Quidditch game in POA,
"Gryffindor haven't won for seven years now." (Bloomsbury paperback
p.108). This would be in the fall of the 1993-94 school year, if we
use the lexicon's year of 1980 for Harry's birth. If Wood meant that
1993 was the seventh year since the last winning Gryffindor quidditch
team, they might have last won as late as the 1987-88 school year.

2) Fred, speaking to Harry after his appointment to the team in
PS/SS,"We haven't won since Charlie left, but this year's team is
going to be brilliant." (Bloomsbury pb p.114). This would be in the
fall of the 1991-92 school year. With the above assumption, Charlie's
last year was 1987-88.

3) Chat
Luisa: How old are Charlie and Bill Weasley in relation to their other
siblings?
JK Rowling replies -> Oh dear, maths. Let me think. Bill is two years
older than Charlie, who is two years older than Percy.

In order to try to make these three constraints fit together in a way
that would be "close enough" for JKR's math skills, let's make three
(fairly reasonable) assumptions:

1) Assume Charlie left Hogwarts after his OWLs. Arguments for this
assumption: Care of Magical Creatures (along with Muggle Studies) seem
like fields in which the OWL credential is adequate for most people
working in the field, as opposed to the more academic fields like
potions and transfiguration. Fred and George did it. We know that
Charlie was a prefect but not head boy. So, if his last year was
87-88, and he was a fifth year that year, Charlie's first year of
school was 1983-84.

2) Assume Charlie's birthday is just before the cutoff date for
school,  he was one of the youngest in his class, and was only ten
when he started school. Hermione was only ten, according to the JKR
approved timeline on the COS DVD. So, if he turned eleven in 1983, he
was born in 1972.

3) Assume Percy's birthday is just after the cutoff date for school,
and he turned twelve just after he started his first year at school.
Since he was a fifth year in 1991-92, he was a first year in 87-88. If
he turned twelve in 1987, he was born in 1975. Thus, Percy and Charlie
would be four years apart at school, although only just over three
years apart in age.

Charlie being three years older than Percy would seem to be close
enough for JKR's math, and would fit the rest of the restricting
canon. Not that I have anything against flints, especially related to
math problems, but I don't think positing a flint is absolutely
necessary to resolve this conflict.

Honey, hoping to make everybody happy