The door to the kitchen opened, and Hammond walked in, his face grim. "Need any help, Iximi?" he asked, not very graciously. "Or should I say 'Your Royal Highness'?"
Iximi dropped a plate which, fortunately, was plastic. "How did you know who I was?"
He sat down on a stool. "Didn't you remember that your portrait hung in the great hall of the palace?"
"Of course," she said, chagrined. "A portrait of a servant would hardly be hung there."
"Not only that, but I asked whom it depicted. Do you think I wouldn't notice the picture of such a beautiful girl?"
"But if you knew, why then did you...?"
He grinned. "I realized you were up to no good, and I have no especial interest in the success of Kendrick's project."
Iximi carefully dried a dish. "And what is his project?"
"To investigate the mythos of the allegedly corporeal divinity in static primitive societies, with especial reference to the god-concept of Zen on Uxen."