AN: Heyy! OMFG 5 more chapters until the big three-o! :D
This chapter is inspired by "Saving Private Ryan," which I watched parts of tonight. (I couldn't watch most of it because I was hysterically crying). It is dedicated to the brave men and women who sacriifice their lives to defend my country (USA BIZNATCHES!) and keep us a free place.

Goodnight Saigon is a song by none other than Billy Joel, and it's actually about the Vietman War! Check it out- it's really a beautiful song. :3
Enjoy and !
Love,
-Alex

Like Brother to Brother

"Oh, bollocks." James mutters under his breath when Hercules, his owl, drops the Daily Prophet on his plate.

"What's up Prongs?" I ask curiously, craning my neck around a sleepy Remus who has his head resting on his arms to see the paper. James unfolds it, nearly hitting a miserable-looking Peter who hasn't said a word the entire morning, his face a very pale shade of grey. I wonder what's wrong with him...

"Muggle War Broke Out Today in Vietnam"James reads the headline on the first page, which shows a moving picture of a helicopter crashing into the ground over and over again. If possible, Peter blanches even more, his eyebrows wrinkling into the furrowed line he gets whenever he's trying not to cry. Remus's head snaps up, eyes staring into mine worridly.

"Is there anything more,James?" I ask, feeling butterflies in my stomach as I think about war. War. Such an innocent looking, short word for such a bloody and brutal thing that claimed so many people's lives. I knwo muggle wars aren't the same as wizarding wars, but they're wars all the same. A useless disagreement that only gets innocent people killed.

"Not really..." James trails off, hazel eyes peering at me worriedly though shining spectales.

"It must be pretty bad." Remus says, shifting closer to me so that his side is pressed up against mine.
"Dumbledore and some of the other proffesors look really worried."

A glance around the Great Hall shows me that plenty of people are worried- students from all the houses are gazing at the prophet in horror and dismay, and some students who are muggleborn are even bursting into tear, like Pete seems about to do.

Remus takes my hand under the table, threading our fingers together reassuringly. I turn my head to him a smile, sweeping a lock of golden hair behind his ear to brush my lips against his temple.

"Pete, what's the matter?" Remus asks our pudgy companion gently, seeing as Peter's got a tear running down his face and his blue eyes are all red and watery.

"I don't want to talk about it!" Peter snaps, voice filled with uncharictaristic acid as he gets up and runs out of the Gtreat Hall, a letter clenched in his fist.

I grind my teeth at the way he yelled at Remus, but James lays a soothing hand on my arm.

"Don't be so hard on him mate. I think there's something really wrong with him."

We don't see Peter throughout the entire rest of the day, not even at dinner-time, which is very unusual, seeing Peter's girth and love of food.

As we walk up the steps to the dormitory, Remus and I hiss at each other in flustered whispers, arguing about what might be wrong with Peter and if we think he's hiding in the dormitory. James opens the door slowly, glancing around the room to see Peter's curtains drawn around his bed.

"Peter?" Remus asks, werewolf senses kicking in as he delicately sniffs the air.
'He's here.' he mouths to me.

"Peter, what's the matter?" James asks, flopping onto his bed with a loud sigh, grabbing Remus's mugggle radio and fiddling with the knobs. He had enchanted it to work in the castle a couple of months ago, so now we have both wizarding radio and muggle radio.

A male from a muggle talk show comes on, voice sad and somber sounding.

"We love our troops." he says.
"We all pray for you to come home saftely and unscathed by this terrible new war. And now, Goodnight Saigon, by Billy Joel. God Bless America." (AN: I know this song came out after the war. For my sake and the stories sake, pretend that it came out during the war. ;) Thanks! -Alex)
The soft hum of helicopter blades and cricket chrips fill the tense atmosphere as the song begins to play. Remus curls up next to me, laying his head on my shoulder and sighing softly, a keening noise thrumming in the back of his throat.

The song plays on, and I realize what it is about.

It's about the war.

I hear sniffles coming from Peter's bed, and when a certain partn of the song comes, those sniffles turn into choked cries.

"And we held onto each other
Like brother to brother
We promised our mother's we'd write.

And we would all go down together,
We said we'd all go down together.
Yes we would all go down together."

"M-my brot-ther's out-t the-ere." he hiccups out, burying his face in his hands and sobbing. I forgot that Peter is muggleborn, and that his older brother didn't attend Hogwarts.

Remus gets up from beside me and walks over to Peter's bed, sitting down and wrapping a thin arm around Peter's shaking shoulders.
"It's okay, Peter. Your brother will be fine. He's going to come home safe."

James and I join him, me holding onto Peter's robes and James with his hand on Peter's knee as Peter clings to Remus.
It scares me how eerie this is to the song.

"You'll always have us, Peter..." James says uncertainly, like he isn't sure how to comfort Peter. I just sit there, one hand on Peter's back, the other clutching Remus's. We sat there like that in silence, holding onto each other like brother to brother...