Title: A New Friend
Fandom: Miss Marple
Rating: G
Length: 444 words
Summary: Miss Marple makes a new friend

When Miss Marple came down to breakfast she was in a happy frame of mind.  It looked as though it was going to be another lovely day and she had arranged to meet her old friend Dolly Bantry for lunch in the nearby town.  Dolly, who was visiting a cousin of hers, had arranged to collect Miss Marple around 11 o’clock, which would give them time to go shopping, have lunch and a decent gossip, before Miss Marple was returned mid-afternoon.

She passed the table where the young wife was sitting on her own, her husband not yet having joined her.

“Good morning, my dear,” Miss Marple said.  “What a lovely morning it is.”

The young woman said nothing but began to play with her knife.  Miss Marple felt slightly concerned, and even more so when the husband came hurrying over to join them.

"Good morning, Miss Marple," he said.  He then turned to the young woman and said, “Fried or poached egg this morning?" while making intricate signs with his fingers.  She responded in the same way.  He smiled and said, “I’ll be back in a moment,” before departing again.

Feeling rather embarrassed, Miss Marple waited for him to return.  When he did, she said, “I’m so sorry.  Please apologise to your wife for me.  I hadn’t realised she was deaf.”

He did so, and then said, “Would you care to join us for breakfast?”

“Only if your wife does not mind.”

“No, it was Emily’s suggestion.”

“In which case I would be delighted.”

A waitress came over to enquire whether Miss Marple would like her usual boiled egg and, upon receiving her assent, said it would be with her shortly.  It didn’t take long for Miss Marple to get used to talking to Emily, with her husband acting as interpreter.  In fact, she was so engrossed in the conversation that she hardly registered the arrival of her boiled egg, beyond thanking the waitress.  Automatically she sliced off the top with her knife and continued talking.

It turned out that Emily was as keen a student of human nature as Miss Marple was herself, and, although she was unable to hear conversations, she was very observant and had noticed things about their fellow guests that even Miss Marple had failed to spot.

Breakfast over, all three stood up to leave, and Miss Marple watched the couple exit the dining room, the young man once more shielding his wife from the other diners.  She was very pleased that any fears she might have had about their relationship had proved groundless.  Instead, she looked forward to telling Dolly about the delightful couple she had met.