âNot to overuse a metaphor, but, do you think the canary ever missed the sky?â
Tango could feel Jimmyâs gaze on him. âWhat do you mean?â
âYou know. The canary in the coal mine. Did y⌠did it miss the sky? Does it remember it?â
Tango imagined Jimmy shifting his wings, head quirked staring at the sky. âDepends, I guess, like if it was born down there or not. Or hatched, or whatever.â
âDo birds have like an instinct or something for the sky?â
Jimmy made a sound as if shrugging, and then seemed to remember he couldnât be seen. âI dunno. I donât think it particularly matters, if itâs being taken care of, yâknow?â
âDid they take care of the canaries in mines back then?â
âYeah, they obviously had to feed âem and stuff. But when the birds passed out from the lack of air or the gas or whatever the miners would like, resuscitate them.â
Tango smirked at the empty air. âBirdie CPR?â
He could feel Jimmy smiling back. âSomething like that, I guess. But they did care about the birds.â
ââCause the birds were the warning.â Tango nodded. âIf they were gone, the miners wouldnât know they were gonna die.â
âI mean, I imagine the miners probably enjoyed the company. I hope they did, anyways. It sounds nice.â
Tango pursed his lip. âYeah, itâs a lot nicer having a little birdie with ya when youâre down in some dark stinky deadly death cave.â
Jimmyâs gaze was back on him now.
âYou asked if the canary ever misses the sky.â Jimmyâs voice was soft. âMaybe it likes the coal mine, sometimes? The sky can be cold and open and lonely. Sure the mine is dark, but the canary has company. A warm home and a hand that feeds it.â
âMaking the best of a bad situation.â
He could feel Jimmyâs frown. âAnd I mean, if thereâs a mine thereâs probably like, gemstones and stuff. You donât find that on the surface.â
âUnless itâs emeralds.â
Jimmy huffed at him, and Tango watched the players scurrying around in front of them.
âI think theyâre digging our graves over there.â
Tango pictured Jimmy sneering at the little cobblestone tombstone the other players stood before, face all scrunched up. He laughed at the image. âYeah, I donât think theyâre even making me one.â
They watched in silence as others scurried around them and the ship in the distance. There was some saying, or song lyrics or something, about ships and anchors.
ââŚDid the canary ever love the coal mine?â
Jimmy hummed. âWell, I certainly tried.â