Title: To Anyone Willing to Listen

Rating: T for now, may change to M.

Pairing: Most likely Rigleen and Mordagret.

AU: WW2 AU

POV: Second/Third person

Summary: Searching for his brother and any news of his friend that had long since disappeared, Rigby doubts that any news of either of the two will pop up. But in a village such as this, many people have stories to tell. You just have to listen. WW2 AU, set in a village in western Switzerland.

Additional Notes: This story is part of my WW2 series, that will be taking place in a village in western Switzerland. This story in particular focuses on Mordecai and Rigby. Names for most of the characters have been changed for historical accuracy. Constructive criticism is always appreciated, but I do not urge you to do so.

Thank you.

They had been together for as long as either of them were able to remember. The two had grown up together, although they weren't with each other year-round. Mordecai and Rigby lived in Spain, although Mordecai and his family only lived there during the summer months. Mordecai and his family would return to France as soon as the school year began, leaving Rigby to his own devices for the remaining nine months.

Not long after Rigby dropped out of school and Mordecai graduated, the war broke out. Rigby fled Spain with his family, moving in with Mordecai and his family in France. Rigby and what was left of his family were welcomed with open arms.

The duo stayed in the French village for an approximated two years before it was invaded due to resistance involvement. Rigby's parents were both shot and killed. Mordecai's mother was a bit frazzled, but was unharmed otherwise. Mordecai's father was shot in the leg, but he was only wounded, and survived.

Although Mordecai decided to stay in France to help rebuild the village, if possible, Rigby fled to Italy to find his brother, Don, and tell him of the fate of their now dead parents. Rigby knew that Don had moved to an Italian village a few years prior, so he decided to start looking for his brother there. He did not find Don, but he did find out from a few people in Anzio that Don had fled to Switzerland as soon as the war had broken out. From there, Rigby decided that he would pursue his brother, going to Switzerland, but that would have to wait, for Rigby decided that he would have to return to France and inform Mordecai of the new information.

When he returned to the village in France, things were different. The emotional state of the village as a whole was rather depressing, a drastic change from what Rigby had known the village to be years prior. Thankfully, Mordecai was still there, but he seemed different as well.

Mordecai would not stop talking about the war. He didn't turn off the radio once, even turning it up a few times to hear it better, focusing intently on the news of the war. Not only that, but he kept asking Rigby about what effect the war had on Italy. He did ask about Don, but Mordecai seemed almost distracted, somewhat, as if he had a difficult task ahead. Finally, Rigby asked him about this, and he got an answer that he did not expect.

Mordecai was leading the resistance in the village now. Before Rigby's departure, it had been a small resistance, consisting of a group of high school students who never caused any serious harm or did anything drastic. Now, however, much of the village, as well as most of the population from surrounding villages were involved as well, doing drastic things such as blowing up cars that transported supplies for the Germans that passed through the area, and killing people. It was a much more serious ordeal by this point.

Rigby could hardly recognize his friend anymore. Mordecai had always been so soft-spoken and was never one for violence. Rigby used to make fun of him for this, back when the duo spent their summers together, their primary issues consisting of having long, fun-filled summers in Spain.

Rigby could hardly recognize his friend anymore, and it scared him a bit.

But after a very, very long conversation, Rigby understood the situation much better. Since Rigby left, people had been getting killed left and right, including Mordecai's parents. Germans had been settling down in the villages, treating the residents like garbage. Those involved in the resistance were very tired farmers who just wanted their homes back and sometimes, it was necessary to get their hands dirty.

Mordecai proposed that Rigby join the resistance, to which Rigby complied.

So the two stayed for an additional two years. An additional violent two years that involved a significant amount of risk-taking. The two were good at what they did, for the most part, and were rather lucky. In these two years, the plan of finding Don in Switzerland was set aside and eventually forgotten.

But, like most people, their luck ran out. Mordecai had disappeared, and Rigby fled the country, abandoning the hopes of finding the other again.

Knowing of the neutral state of the neighboring country Switzerland, Rigby planned on hiding in the country for the remainder of the war. He knew that where he settled would have to be in Switzerland, in a quiet village that was near the Swiss-French border. He eventually settled on a quaint village in Switzerland.

At first glance, Rigby found the village to be rather boring, but eventually, he got to know the people living in the village.

And sometimes, the right people can make a drab city suddenly seem interesting. And with a war that had such a heavy impact all over Europe and the world, people from all over have interesting stories to tell.

You just have to stick around long enough to listen.

Chapter Notes: This is just the introduction chapter, meant to solely set the story. I have been itching to start a WW2 series for over a full year, but I have been too lazy to do so. I apologize for not updating for such a long time, but I had to focus on my academics and my personal health. I hope to continue writing for the next week or so, but I will then be preoccupied once again with finals. I apologize for this, but I will try to write a lot in hopes of making up for these lost months.