Parsimonious companions? (5,7)

I believe the answer is:

close friends

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'parsimonious companions?' is the definition.
I don't know anything about this answer so I cannot judge whether it can be defined by this definition.

'parsimonious companions?' is the wordplay.
'parsimonious' becomes 'close' (I can't justify this - if you can you should believe this answer much more).
'companions?' becomes 'friends' (companion is a kind of friend).
'close'+'friends'='CLOSE FRIENDS'

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I've seen this clue in The Globe and Mail.

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