“Hey Canopus. How are you?” Kaye smiled.
“Well enough.” He jerked a thumb over his shoulder. “You know, inside we have places to sit.”
Kaye took the invitation as Kyanosa pounced on her suitcase and carried it in just after her. The apartment contained a few standard pieces of furniture in a rich dark green. The walls were white and held no pictures or decorations and the blinds on the windows were all closed, leaving the room illuminated just by the white ceiling light.
“It’s nice.” Kaye said, really meaning it was plain but being too polite to say it. But then what had she expected from three single men?
“Close enough.” Kyanosa said looking around. “Though I keep telling him to get something to put on these walls.”
“And I keep telling him it’s fine.” Canopus flopped on one end of the sofa, presumably right where he had been a half a minute ago. The TV across from him droned through the news.
“Where is Dirk? Is he around?”
Kyanosa shook his head. “Out getting groceries. Should be back before too long though.” Kyanosa looked at his wrist, then the walls, then Canopus.” You could at least convince him to get a clock.
Kaye sat down in the chair looking from Kyanosa to Canopus. She had not seen them for very long after they had been brought back to life. Though she was familiar with Kyanosa, it was odd to see the ‘cold’ personality in a body of his own.
Kyanosa waved.
“Have you guys already eaten? I had my sister make you all a meal.” Kaye pulled a Tupperware container from her laptop bag.
Kyanosa blinked and looked at Canopus. “Have we already eaten dinner?”
“No. Stop talking.” Canopus walked over to Kaye and looked at the Tupperware. “Would it be enough for three people?”
Kyanosa smiled. “We don’t have small appetites.”
“I think it’ll be enough. It was all I could think of for helping to pay him back until I can get a place of my own.”
Canopus took the Tupperware and went down the hallway. “He wouldn’t mind. You’re not evil. And I doubt you’d be any real drain on him; he hasn’t complained about money once this month.”
Kyanosa nodded. “We think he’s a diamond smuggler.”
“No we don’t.” Kaye could hear Canopus getting some plates.
“What does Dirk do? I mean I know he’s in the death business, but he’s not like the Grim Reaper or anything is he?” Kaye asked.
“We actually had this conversation once.” Kyanosa sat on the end of the couch closer to Kaye and started illustrating with his fingers. “Okay, the whole death thing is set up like a hierarchy. There’s this big guy at the top, people working for him, people working for them, and so on. The Grim Reaper is one of the people right under the big guy, and so is Dirk. Technically, they’re at the same level, but since the big guy likes Dirk, in reality Dirk’s above the Grim Reaper.”
Canopus’s head poked around the corner. “Murmur.” He disappeared, and Kaye noticed the hum of a microwave oven.
“Right. Murmur works right under Dirk, and she’s kind of like a Grim Reaper, except that she doesn’t do that as much now that she’s in Dirk’s spot.” He smiled. It was probably the longest speech Kyanosa has given in years.
“I never would’ve guessed there’d be any money in the death business,” Kaye said. “Or the after death business?”
“There’s enough to survive. Somebody has to keep track of everything down here and what’s killing whom up there. But Dirk apparently had a couple of side projects or something, and he invested his payment well.” Kyanosa leaned back.
