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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/9407
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/9407
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

What you need is **a tell.**

Give Nicene some clear, identifying characteristic. She has purple hair; she doesn't let anybody touch her; she refers to any sort of weapon as a "thingamabob"; whatever. Then, whenever it is you want the reader to understand who she is, you just let her "tell" show:

> "I'm Cherry," the woman said. She wasn't looking him in the eyes; instead, she was examining his sword cautiously. "Say," she said, "nice thingamabob you've got there."

It's particularly effective if you also provide some standard clue that she's not using her real name. What you're doing here is relying on narrative convention - sure, Cherry _could_ be some complete stranger who happens to have the same mannerism, but the reader understands that this is your way of identifying her for who she really is.

Whatever hinting you can give as to Cherry being a false identity will be helpful - the moment the reader _recognizes_ your character, they'll be wondering why she's in hiding, so you should either answer that question, or else simply acknowledge it every now and again, until it's time to give the answer. That way the reader knows that you, the author, haven't simply forgotten about a huge plot hole, and the they, the reader, haven't missed the crucial dozen pages explaining everything that's going on.

Original score: 2