Fic for the day five prompt of Colloyd Week 2023, "AU/Crossover".
Like I did for other "crossover" prompt days for previous Colloyd Weeks I've not done a crossover of Symphonia with something else, but have still tried to do something that fits the prompt.
Post-game fic set in the same timeline as the other ones I've written where Colette and Lloyd are living in Mizuho.
There is a reference to the seventh fic ("Free Day") from my set of fics for Colloyd Week 2021 but this should still make sense if you've not read that.
Like I have in previous fics I've used the term wireless for the radio as that seems right in that world.
Disclaimer: I don't own Tales of Symphonia.
Zelos sighed, put his pen down on his desk and stretched, raising his arms above his head. The paperwork he'd been working on had managed to be both complicated and boring and he was happy to have finished it. What he needed now, he decided, was to relax. Especially as the weather was so hot today, a nice cold drink in a cool, shady spot sounded perfect. He wouldn't mind a bit of company too, he thought. He looked at the clock, it would be a while before Sheena would get home. He thought for a moment before grabbing a fresh sheet of paper and writing her a note before heading over to Lloyd and Colette's house.
He knew they would be home today, they'd mentioned they were planning an afternoon of gardening, and was sure they'd have something nice and refreshing to drink if they were out in the garden.
He was right and was soon settled in a hammock in their garden, a cold drink and a slice of cake to hand and a comfortable straw hat loosely perched a little on his head, a little over his face.
The couple settled nearby on the grass with drinks and snacks of their own, deciding to take a break from the work they were doing in the vegetable patch.
"Oh, the new Inspector Mystery story starts tonight," Colette said, checking her watch to see how long it would be before the show was on.
"That's the detective show on the wireless that you like isn't it?" Zelos asked, his tone of voice contentedly relaxed.
"One of them. I like the Detective Barkley one too, that's on tomorrow," she replied.
"Isn't that the one that's meant for kids?" Zelos asked, a slight giggle in his voice.
"Well, I guess, but I like it, I'm not so good at guessing the endings of the Inspector Mystery ones, but I can sometimes work out the Detective Barkley ones before the end of the episode so it's fun to try and do that," Colette said.
"The fact that there's a talking dog in it helps too," Lloyd teased gently, smiling as Colette nodded earnestly.
"He's such a cool dog, so smart, and so good at sniffing out clues," she said before taking a bite of her cake.
"If he needed help solving a case to do with food Noishe would be the perfect assistant," Lloyd laughed as the arshis shifted slightly closer to Colette and gave a very small, quiet whine, looking hopefully at the cake.
"Oh my goodness, that would be SO cute! Noishe helping Detective Barkley! You'd be the best assistant Noishe, and you'd look really smart in a matching hat like his one," Colette's eyes lit up as she imagined that.
She looked over at Lloyd with a similar expression to the one that Noishe was making at her cake.
"You want me to draw that now don't you?" he asked, guessing exactly what she wanted. He smiled and rolled his eyes playfully when she nodded enthusiastically. "Alright, when I've finished my cake."
He did so then went in to the house to grab a sketchbook, returning to find Noishe had moved away from Colette, who had also finished her cake, and was now looking hopefully at Zelos who hadn't finished his snack yet.
"So, Detective Barkley and Noishe, together both in hats like the one the Detective usually wears, right?" Lloyd asked, flipping the book to a blank page.
"Yes please," Colette said, clasping her hands together happily.
"How do you know what Detective Barkley looks like?" Zelos asked, he'd been planning to have a doze in the shade and wasn't sure he wanted to get involved in what seemed like it was going to be a bit of an odd conversation but couldn't help himself.
"Because there have been pictures in the magazine about wireless programmes, and sometimes they describe him in the show too," Colette said.
Zelos frowned slightly, he knew he was probably going to regret asking the question but was curious now.
"So why does he have a hat?" he asked.
"So people know he's a detective, and not just a regular dog, so they know to help him with his investigations," Colette answered, smiling as she looked over at Lloyd who was happily sketching.
"Doesn't the fact that he talks give people enough of a sign?" Zelos asked.
"No, his hat gives him an air of authority," Colette said firmly, completely convinced that the hat was absolutely necessary. "Besides, it looks really cute."
"So do people not always respect the talking dog detective in the children's show?" Zelos asked, wondering how he'd gotten drawn in to this.
"Not always, no. If everyone just talked to him right away and told him about all the evidence and stuff there wouldn't be much of a story sometimes," Colette replied.
"Maybe he should have another assistant, to help him with people who don't want to cooperate with the investigation," Zelos thought about it for a moment. "If there's a talking dog why not a talking goose? Those things are vicious, they'd make anyone agree to help."
Zelos shuddered slightly, remembering the geese he'd encountered on the narrowboat holiday he'd been on with Sheena, Colette and Lloyd.
Colette giggled and Lloyd, who had been following the conversation while he was drawing, chuckled and started sketching on a different bit of the page.
"Maybe for the more complicated cases he should have a whole team. Hmm, so Detective Barkley, Noishe, a goose assistant, who else, hmm," Colette pondered.
"How about Hayson-Crystal, the author from that Wonderful Wild World nature show you like who's really good at writing about small details? She could help take notes for them," Zelos suggested a little flippantly, but when he'd finished taking a sip from his drink and put it back on the table beside the hammock he didn't lie down again, he stayed sitting and facing Colette, the hat properly on his head now.
A little while later Sheena called out at the garden gate then let herself in. She paused when she noticed the animated conversation going on then slowly walked over and greeted her friends and husband with a wave, not wanting to interrupt. She tried, and failed, to follow what was going on and, when there was a pause, asked Colette.
"We're assembling a bunch of the best candidates to make a super detective team," Colette answered.
"Sorry, I don't follow," Sheena said.
"Well it started with the idea of Detective Barkley, from the show on the wireless, having assistants and Lloyd drawing that and, well," Colette said, gesturing for Lloyd to show Sheena the drawing. He turned the sketchbook so she could see it.
Sheena looked at it for a moment, trying to take in all of the various characters drawn on the page.
"Is that Noishe with a hat on?" she asked. Colette smiled and nodded happily.
"Mmmhmm, so everyone knows he's an assistant detective," she explained.
Sheena looked over at Zelos, who had still been joining in with the conversation when she'd entered the garden, and gave him a questioning look.
"They started it," he said, protesting his innocence, and shrugged.
Sheena sighed and thought that this sounded like it might be a bit too bizarre to properly understand after a long day of work but, considering how happy her friends looked, she'd try her best anyway.