There was no special trick to it. Any Crasii who came with few feet of a suzerain knew it instantly. Her species was created for it, specifically designed to recognise and serve their masters — every canine, every feline, even those wretched, unsociable amphibians. Of course, Tiji was a Scard, which meant she lacked the normal Crasii instinct to serve them, but she hadn't lost the ability to identify one from across a crowded room. She couldn't fail to recognise the sickeningly familiar prickle that washed over her skin as soon as she'd followed Arkady Desean into the consort's presence. Tiji had slipped unnoticed into the reception hall behind Arkady when they arrived and had taken up a position in the shadows of one of the twelve tall columns supporting the room's impressively decorated domed ceiling. As the two women hedged around the real reason they were both here, speaking of fabrics and old friendships, Tiji let her skin blend with the murals around her, until she became all but invisible.
