diff --git a/agent/skill_commands.py b/agent/skill_commands.py
index 294ca2b1754..3f1156a8592 100644
--- a/agent/skill_commands.py
+++ b/agent/skill_commands.py
@@ -97,7 +97,7 @@ def extract_user_instruction_from_skill_message(content: Any) -> Optional[str]:
     return None
 
 
-def describe_skill_invocation(content: Any) -> Optional[str]:
+def describe_skill_invocation(content: Any, separator: str = " — ") -> Optional[str]:
     """Render a slash-skill-expanded turn the way the user typed it.
 
     The expanded message embeds the whole skill body, so any surface that
@@ -109,6 +109,10 @@ def describe_skill_invocation(content: Any) -> Optional[str]:
     Returns ``"/work — fix the title leak"``, or ``"/work"`` for a bare
     invocation, or ``None`` when *content* is not skill scaffolding (the
     caller should then summarize it as an ordinary message).
+
+    *separator* joins the command and the instruction. Previews use the
+    default em dash; pass ``" "`` for the literal invocation the user typed,
+    which is what chat transcripts render.
     """
     if not isinstance(content, str) or not content.startswith(_SKILL_INVOCATION_PREFIX):
         return None
@@ -127,7 +131,7 @@ def describe_skill_invocation(content: Any) -> Optional[str]:
         instruction = instruction.split(SKILL_EXCERPT_JOINT)[0]
         instruction = " ".join(instruction.split())
         if instruction:
-            return f"{label} — {instruction}" if name else instruction
+            return f"{label}{separator}{instruction}" if name else instruction
 
     return label if name else None
 
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/composer/hooks/use-composer-queue.ts b/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/composer/hooks/use-composer-queue.ts
index dff3804bb69..e1bb5442fef 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/composer/hooks/use-composer-queue.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/composer/hooks/use-composer-queue.ts
@@ -106,7 +106,9 @@ export function useComposerQueue({
       entryId: entry.id,
       sessionKey: activeQueueSessionKey
     })
-    loadIntoComposer(entry.text, entry.attachments)
+    // Edit what the panel SHOWS. A queued `/skill` entry's text is the
+    // expanded skill body — never drop that into the composer.
+    loadIntoComposer(entry.displayText ?? entry.text, entry.attachments)
     triggerHaptic('selection')
     focusInput()
   }
@@ -135,7 +137,7 @@ export function useComposerQueue({
 
     if (next) {
       setQueueEditSnapshot({ ...queueEdit, entryId: next.id })
-      loadIntoComposer(next.text, next.attachments)
+      loadIntoComposer(next.displayText ?? next.text, next.attachments)
     } else {
       setQueueEditSnapshot(null)
       loadIntoComposer(queueEdit.draft, queueEdit.attachments)
@@ -213,6 +215,7 @@ export function useComposerQueue({
         const accepted = await Promise.resolve(
           onSubmit(entry.text, {
             attachments: entry.attachments,
+            ...(entry.displayText ? { displayText: entry.displayText } : {}),
             fromQueue: true,
             sessionId: drainRuntimeSessionId,
             storedSessionId: drainQueueSessionKey
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/composer/queue-panel.tsx b/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/composer/queue-panel.tsx
index 591eeb10ebb..2f5612efd13 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/composer/queue-panel.tsx
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/app/chat/composer/queue-panel.tsx
@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@ interface QueuePanelProps {
 }
 
 const entryPreview = (entry: QueuedPromptEntry, c: Translations['composer']) =>
-  entry.text.trim() || (entry.attachments.length > 0 ? c.attachmentOnly : c.emptyTurn)
+  (entry.displayText ?? entry.text).trim() || (entry.attachments.length > 0 ? c.attachmentOnly : c.emptyTurn)
 
 export function QueuePanel({
   busy,
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/app/session/hooks/use-prompt-actions/index.test.tsx b/apps/desktop/src/app/session/hooks/use-prompt-actions/index.test.tsx
index c9cd19c6406..6bf51c1e0fc 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/app/session/hooks/use-prompt-actions/index.test.tsx
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/app/session/hooks/use-prompt-actions/index.test.tsx
@@ -1215,9 +1215,9 @@ describe('usePromptActions slash.exec dispatch payloads', () => {
   it("sends a skill's kickoff into the TAB that invoked it, not the foreground chat", async () => {
     // `/work` in a fresh ⌘T tab: slash.exec returns a skill dispatch whose
     // `message` is the kickoff prompt. The dispatcher resolved the tab as its
-    // target, printed "⚡ loading skill" there — then submitted the kickoff
-    // with no target at all, so submit re-resolved from activeSessionIdRef and
-    // fired it as a user message into whatever conversation was on screen.
+    // target, then submitted the kickoff with no target at all, so submit
+    // re-resolved from activeSessionIdRef and fired it as a user message into
+    // whatever conversation was on screen.
     const tabRuntimeId = 'tab-runtime'
     const tabStoredId = 'tab-stored'
 
@@ -1262,6 +1262,56 @@ describe('usePromptActions slash.exec dispatch payloads', () => {
     $queuedPromptsBySession.set({})
   })
 
+  it('renders a skill turn as its invocation — the expanded body never reaches a bubble', async () => {
+    // A `/skill` dispatch's `message` is the whole skill body (model-facing
+    // scaffolding). The agent must receive it verbatim; every UI surface —
+    // the user bubble and any system line — must show only `/work fix it`.
+    const skillBody =
+      '[IMPORTANT: The user has invoked the "work" skill, indicating they want you to follow its instructions.\n' +
+      'The full skill content is loaded below.]\n\nSPIN UP A WORKTREE, never the primary checkout.\n\n' +
+      'The user has provided the following instruction alongside the skill invocation: fix it'
+
+    const states: Record<string, unknown>[] = []
+    const submitted: (Record<string, unknown> | undefined)[] = []
+
+    const requestGateway = vi.fn(async (method: string, params?: Record<string, unknown>) => {
+      if (method === 'prompt.submit') {
+        submitted.push(params)
+      }
+
+      return (
+        method === 'slash.exec' ? { type: 'skill', name: 'work', message: skillBody, display: '/work fix it' } : {}
+      ) as never
+    })
+
+    let handle: HarnessHandle | null = null
+    await actRender(
+      <Harness
+        onReady={h => (handle = h)}
+        onSeedState={s => states.push(s)}
+        refreshSessions={async () => undefined}
+        requestGateway={requestGateway}
+      />
+    )
+
+    await handle!.submitText('/work fix it')
+
+    // The agent still gets the full skill.
+    expect(submitted).toEqual([expect.objectContaining({ text: skillBody })])
+
+    const rendered = states.flatMap(state => {
+      const messages = Array.isArray(state.messages)
+        ? (state.messages as Array<{ parts?: Array<{ text?: string }> }>)
+        : []
+
+      return messages.flatMap(message => (message.parts ?? []).map(part => part.text ?? ''))
+    })
+
+    expect(rendered).toContain('/work fix it')
+    expect(rendered.join('\n')).not.toContain('SPIN UP A WORKTREE')
+    expect(rendered.join('\n')).not.toContain('IMPORTANT: The user has invoked')
+  })
+
   it('slash status header carries the command token, not the full invocation', async () => {
     // `/goal <long prose>` used to echo the entire invocation in the mono
     // header AND the goal text again in the backend notice right under it.
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/app/session/hooks/use-prompt-actions/slash.ts b/apps/desktop/src/app/session/hooks/use-prompt-actions/slash.ts
index c70e6977c0a..ad30e30cae6 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/app/session/hooks/use-prompt-actions/slash.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/app/session/hooks/use-prompt-actions/slash.ts
@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+import { skillInvocationText } from '@hermes/shared'
 import { type MutableRefObject, useCallback, useRef } from 'react'
 
 import { getProfiles } from '@/hermes'
@@ -264,9 +265,12 @@ export function useSlashCommand(deps: SlashCommandDeps) {
             return
           }
 
-          if (dispatch.type === 'skill') {
-            renderSlashOutput(`⚡ loading skill: ${dispatch.name}`)
-          }
+          // A skill/bundle dispatch's `message` is the expanded skill body —
+          // model-facing scaffolding. Never render it; the bubble shows the
+          // invocation the gateway projected, or one read from the payload
+          // when the backend is older than this app.
+          const projected = 'display' in dispatch ? dispatch.display?.trim() : ''
+          const displayText = projected || skillInvocationText(message) || undefined
 
           // Gate on the TARGET session's own busy state, not the foreground
           // view's — see isTargetSessionBusy. `busyRef` mirrors whatever chat
@@ -286,7 +290,7 @@ export function useSlashCommand(deps: SlashCommandDeps) {
             // whichever chat is now in front.
             const queueKey = resolveComposerSessionKey(storedSessionId, $sessions.get()) || storedSessionId || sessionId
 
-            if (enqueueQueuedPrompt(queueKey, { attachments: [], text: message })) {
+            if (enqueueQueuedPrompt(queueKey, { attachments: [], text: message, displayText })) {
               renderSlashOutput('session busy — message queued to send when the current turn finishes')
             } else {
               renderSlashOutput('session busy — /interrupt the current turn before sending this command')
@@ -299,12 +303,11 @@ export function useSlashCommand(deps: SlashCommandDeps) {
           // same pair the output writer and the busy gate above already use.
           // Bare `submitPromptText(message)` let submit re-resolve from
           // `activeSessionIdRef`, which names the FOREGROUND chat: a `/work`
-          // typed into a fresh ⌘T tab loaded the skill in that tab, printed
-          // "⚡ loading skill" there, then fired its kickoff as a user message
-          // into whatever conversation was on screen. Every other target the
-          // dispatcher serves (tile, background queue drain, a session created
-          // by this very call) had the same leak.
-          await submitPromptText(message, { sessionId, storedSessionId })
+          // typed into a fresh ⌘T tab loaded the skill in that tab, then fired
+          // its kickoff as a user message into whatever conversation was on
+          // screen. Every other target the dispatcher serves (tile, background
+          // queue drain, a session created by this very call) had the same leak.
+          await submitPromptText(message, { sessionId, storedSessionId, displayText })
         }
 
         try {
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/app/session/hooks/use-prompt-actions/submit.ts b/apps/desktop/src/app/session/hooks/use-prompt-actions/submit.ts
index d8988a0c926..33b6ab4c33e 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/app/session/hooks/use-prompt-actions/submit.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/app/session/hooks/use-prompt-actions/submit.ts
@@ -268,10 +268,16 @@ export function useSubmitPrompt(deps: SubmitPromptDeps) {
 
       const optimisticId = `user-${Date.now()}-${Math.random().toString(36).slice(2, 8)}`
 
+      // What the bubble shows. A `/skill` send carries the whole expanded
+      // skill body as its text — model-facing scaffolding — so the dispatcher
+      // hands us the invocation to render instead. Everything else shows what
+      // was typed.
+      const bubbleText = options?.displayText ?? visibleText
+
       const buildUserMessage = (): ChatMessage => ({
         id: optimisticId,
         role: 'user',
-        parts: [textPart(visibleText || (attachmentRefs.length ? '' : attachments.map(a => a.label).join(', ')))],
+        parts: [textPart(bubbleText || (attachmentRefs.length ? '' : attachments.map(a => a.label).join(', ')))],
         attachmentRefs
       })
 
@@ -466,7 +472,7 @@ export function useSubmitPrompt(deps: SubmitPromptDeps) {
 
       if (!sessionId) {
         try {
-          sessionId = await createBackendSessionForSend(visibleText)
+          sessionId = await createBackendSessionForSend(bubbleText)
         } catch (err) {
           dropOptimistic(null)
           releaseBusy()
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/app/session/hooks/use-prompt-actions/utils.ts b/apps/desktop/src/app/session/hooks/use-prompt-actions/utils.ts
index b193b1aebf1..a2ec14eb2a5 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/app/session/hooks/use-prompt-actions/utils.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/app/session/hooks/use-prompt-actions/utils.ts
@@ -393,6 +393,11 @@ export interface SubmitTextOptions {
    *  (queue drain, steer, external submit requests): the check is a no-op
    *  without it. */
   composerScope?: string | null
+  /** What the transcript shows for this send, when it differs from the text
+   *  the agent receives. A `/skill` invocation expands into the whole skill
+   *  body — model-facing scaffolding the UI must never render — so the slash
+   *  dispatcher passes the invocation (`/work fix the leak`) here. */
+  displayText?: string
   fromQueue?: boolean
   /** Runtime session id to submit into. Queue drains pass this so a
    *  backgrounded/source session cannot be replaced by the current foreground
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/app/types.ts b/apps/desktop/src/app/types.ts
index 01ada56e935..f7452607f7c 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/app/types.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/app/types.ts
@@ -132,12 +132,17 @@ export interface SkillCommandDispatchResponse {
   type: 'skill'
   name: string
   message?: string
+  /** The invocation the UI renders (`/work fix the leak`). `message` is the
+   *  expanded skill body — model-facing scaffolding no surface may show. */
+  display?: string
 }
 
 export interface SendCommandDispatchResponse {
   type: 'send'
   message: string
   notice?: string
+  /** Set for a skill-bundle send: see SkillCommandDispatchResponse.display. */
+  display?: string
 }
 
 export interface PrefillCommandDispatchResponse {
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/directive-text.test.ts b/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/directive-text.test.ts
index d5f7074e5d1..c177e2f5066 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/directive-text.test.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/directive-text.test.ts
@@ -74,8 +74,14 @@ describe('inline skill references', () => {
     expect(skills('roughly 3 /4 of it')).toEqual([])
   })
 
-  it('does not chip a leading slash — that is a command invocation, not prose', () => {
-    expect(skills('/clean')).toEqual([])
+  it('chips a leading slash, which now reaches the transcript as a skill invocation', () => {
+    // #71664 asserted the opposite, and was right at the time: a leading slash
+    // only ever EXECUTED, so it never reached a rendered message as text —
+    // the turn that reached the bubble was the expanded skill body. Projecting
+    // a skill turn back onto `/work fix it` changes that precondition, so the
+    // invocation now has to chip like any other skill reference.
+    expect(skills('/clean')).toEqual(['/clean'])
+    expect(skills('/work fix the leak')).toEqual(['/work'])
   })
 
   it('parses a skill chip alongside an @ reference', () => {
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/directive-text.tsx b/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/directive-text.tsx
index 94edc90963d..418f59eda71 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/directive-text.tsx
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/components/assistant-ui/directive-text.tsx
@@ -177,16 +177,22 @@ const HERMES_DIRECTIVE_RE = new RegExp(
   'g'
 )
 
-// A skill referenced mid-prose (`clean this up with /clean`). The composer
-// inserts it as a pill, so the sent message renders it as one too rather than
-// flattening back to raw text. Only matches after whitespace — a leading `/`
-// is a command invocation, which never reaches a rendered message as text.
+// A skill referenced in a sent message — either the invocation that opens it
+// (`/work fix the leak`, which is all a skill turn ever renders as) or one
+// named mid-prose (`clean this up with /clean`). The composer inserts both as
+// pills, so the sent message renders them as pills too rather than flattening
+// back to raw text.
+//
+// #71664 deliberately excluded a LEADING slash, and was right then: a command
+// only ever executed, so it never reached a rendered message as text. Skill
+// turns now project back onto their invocation, so that precondition is gone
+// and `^` joins the lookbehind.
 //
 // Unlike the composer's caret-anchored trigger, this scans finished text, so
 // it must reject a token that continues into a path: `/usr/local/bin` would
 // otherwise chip as `/usr`. `(?![\w-]*\/)` requires the token to end at
 // something other than another slash.
-const SLASH_SKILL_RE = /(?<=\s)\/([a-zA-Z][\w-]*)(?![\w-]*\/)/g
+const SLASH_SKILL_RE = /(?<=^|\s)\/([a-zA-Z][\w-]*)(?![\w-]*\/)/g
 
 const TRAILING_PUNCTUATION_RE = /[,.;!?]+$/
 
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/lib/chat-messages.ts b/apps/desktop/src/lib/chat-messages.ts
index 13cca5b511b..6ee82ebbb6e 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/lib/chat-messages.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/lib/chat-messages.ts
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 import type { ThreadMessageLike } from '@assistant-ui/react'
-import type { BillingBlock } from '@hermes/shared'
+import { type BillingBlock, skillInvocationText } from '@hermes/shared'
 
 import { extractImageRefs } from '@/lib/embedded-images'
 import { dedupeGeneratedImageEchoesInParts } from '@/lib/generated-images'
@@ -301,6 +301,15 @@ function displayContentForMessage(role: SessionMessage['role'], content: unknown
     return textContent
   }
 
+  // A `/skill` turn is stored expanded (the whole skill body). Current
+  // gateways project it to the invocation before it ever reaches us; this is
+  // the fallback for an older backend that still ships the raw payload.
+  const invocation = skillInvocationText(textContent)
+
+  if (invocation) {
+    return invocation
+  }
+
   const marker = textContent.match(ATTACHED_CONTEXT_MARKER_RE)
 
   if (!marker || marker.index === undefined) {
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/lib/chat-runtime.ts b/apps/desktop/src/lib/chat-runtime.ts
index b392d2692a3..65965c41b67 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/lib/chat-runtime.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/lib/chat-runtime.ts
@@ -283,10 +283,14 @@ export function parseCommandDispatch(raw: unknown): CommandDispatchResponse | nu
       return typeof row.target === 'string' ? { type: 'alias', target: row.target } : null
 
     case 'skill':
-      return typeof row.name === 'string' ? { type: 'skill', name: row.name, message: str(row.message) } : null
+      return typeof row.name === 'string'
+        ? { type: 'skill', name: row.name, message: str(row.message), display: str(row.display) }
+        : null
 
     case 'send':
-      return typeof row.message === 'string' ? { type: 'send', message: row.message, notice: str(row.notice) } : null
+      return typeof row.message === 'string'
+        ? { type: 'send', message: row.message, notice: str(row.notice), display: str(row.display) }
+        : null
 
     case 'prefill':
       return typeof row.message === 'string' ? { type: 'prefill', message: row.message, notice: str(row.notice) } : null
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/store/composer-queue.ts b/apps/desktop/src/store/composer-queue.ts
index 9a048c78699..ba610b36275 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/store/composer-queue.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/store/composer-queue.ts
@@ -5,6 +5,10 @@ import type { ComposerAttachment } from './composer'
 export interface QueuedPromptEntry {
   id: string
   text: string
+  /** What the queue panel and the sent bubble show, when it differs from the
+   *  text the agent receives. A queued `/skill` invocation carries the whole
+   *  expanded skill body as `text` — the UI shows the invocation instead. */
+  displayText?: string
   attachments: ComposerAttachment[]
   queuedAt: number
 }
@@ -110,7 +114,7 @@ export const getQueuedPrompts = (key: string | null | undefined): QueuedPromptEn
 
 export const enqueueQueuedPrompt = (
   key: string | null | undefined,
-  payload: { text: string; attachments: ComposerAttachment[] }
+  payload: { text: string; attachments: ComposerAttachment[]; displayText?: string }
 ): null | QueuedPromptEntry => {
   const sid = sidOf(key)
 
@@ -121,6 +125,7 @@ export const enqueueQueuedPrompt = (
   const entry: QueuedPromptEntry = {
     id: nextId(),
     text: payload.text,
+    ...(payload.displayText ? { displayText: payload.displayText } : {}),
     attachments: cloneAttachments(payload.attachments),
     queuedAt: Date.now()
   }
@@ -218,7 +223,12 @@ export const updateQueuedPrompt = (
 
     changed = true
 
-    return { ...entry, text: update.text, attachments }
+    // The user rewrote the text, so any display projection it carried (a
+    // `/skill` invocation standing in for the expanded body) no longer
+    // describes it — what they typed is now what sends.
+    const { displayText: _dropped, ...rest } = entry
+
+    return { ...rest, text: update.text, attachments }
   })
 
   if (!changed) {
diff --git a/apps/shared/src/index.ts b/apps/shared/src/index.ts
index 21c40a716db..391a3715bd2 100644
--- a/apps/shared/src/index.ts
+++ b/apps/shared/src/index.ts
@@ -44,6 +44,7 @@ export {
   JsonRpcGatewayClient,
   type WebSocketLike
 } from './json-rpc-gateway'
+export { skillInvocationText } from './skill-scaffold'
 export {
   type HermesSkin,
   SKIN_BRANDING_TOKENS,
diff --git a/apps/shared/src/skill-scaffold.test.ts b/apps/shared/src/skill-scaffold.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..954ff41a6c9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/apps/shared/src/skill-scaffold.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,61 @@
+import { describe, expect, it } from 'vitest'
+
+import { skillInvocationText } from './skill-scaffold'
+
+// Byte-identical to what agent/skill_commands.py emits — a desktop/TUI talking
+// to an older gateway sees exactly these strings.
+const BODY = 'SPIN UP A WORKTREE. Never edit the primary checkout.\n'.repeat(20)
+
+const singleSkill = (instruction?: string) =>
+  [
+    '[IMPORTANT: The user has invoked the "work" skill, indicating they want you to follow its instructions.',
+    'The full skill content is loaded below.]',
+    '',
+    BODY,
+    '',
+    '[Skill directory: /Users/x/skills/work]',
+    ...(instruction
+      ? ['', `The user has provided the following instruction alongside the skill invocation: ${instruction}`]
+      : [])
+  ].join('\n')
+
+const bundle = (instruction?: string) =>
+  [
+    '[IMPORTANT: The user has invoked the "/clean /work" stacked skill bundle, loading 2 skills together.]',
+    '',
+    'Skills loaded: clean, work',
+    ...(instruction ? ['', `User instruction: ${instruction}`] : []),
+    '',
+    '[Loaded as part of the stacked skill invocation "clean".]',
+    '',
+    BODY
+  ].join('\n')
+
+describe('skillInvocationText', () => {
+  it('renders a single-skill turn as the invocation, never the body', () => {
+    const projected = skillInvocationText(singleSkill('fix the title leak'))
+
+    expect(projected).toBe('/work fix the title leak')
+    expect(projected).not.toContain('WORKTREE')
+  })
+
+  it('renders a bare invocation as just the command', () => {
+    expect(skillInvocationText(singleSkill())).toBe('/work')
+  })
+
+  it('renders a bundle turn as the typed keys plus the instruction', () => {
+    const projected = skillInvocationText(bundle('ship it'))
+
+    expect(projected).toBe('/clean /work ship it')
+    expect(projected).not.toContain('WORKTREE')
+  })
+
+  it('collapses newlines in a multi-line instruction so the bubble stays one line', () => {
+    expect(skillInvocationText(singleSkill('fix the leak\n\nthen ship'))).toBe('/work fix the leak then ship')
+  })
+
+  it('leaves ordinary user prose alone', () => {
+    expect(skillInvocationText('just a normal message')).toBeNull()
+    expect(skillInvocationText('[IMPORTANT: read the docs]')).toBeNull()
+  })
+})
diff --git a/apps/shared/src/skill-scaffold.ts b/apps/shared/src/skill-scaffold.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..fffae405b2a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/apps/shared/src/skill-scaffold.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,69 @@
+/**
+ * A `/skill` invocation expands into a model-facing message that embeds the
+ * whole skill body. That payload is for the agent — the UI shows the
+ * invocation the user typed (`/work fix the leak`) and nothing else.
+ *
+ * The gateway already projects this (see `_skill_scaffold_projection` in
+ * tui_gateway/server.py) and ships the result as `display` on a dispatch and
+ * as the `text` of a `skill_invocation` history row. This module is the
+ * client-side twin so a desktop/TUI talking to an older gateway — or any
+ * future path that hands raw scaffolding to a bubble — still renders the
+ * invocation instead of the body.
+ *
+ * The markers below mirror `agent/skill_commands.py` byte for byte.
+ */
+
+const INVOCATION_PREFIX = '[IMPORTANT: The user has invoked the '
+const SINGLE_MARKER = 'The full skill content is loaded below.]'
+const SINGLE_INSTRUCTION = 'The user has provided the following instruction alongside the skill invocation: '
+const RUNTIME_NOTE = '\n\n[Runtime note:'
+const BUNDLE_MARKER = ' skill bundle,'
+const BUNDLE_INSTRUCTION = '\nUser instruction: '
+const BUNDLE_SKILL_BLOCK = '\n\n[Loaded as part of the '
+
+// The skill name is the first quoted span of the activation note, for both the
+// single-skill (`work`) and the bundle (`/clean /work`) header.
+const NAME_RE = new RegExp(`^${INVOCATION_PREFIX.replace(/[[\]]/g, '\\$&')}"([^"]*)"`)
+
+/** Text between `marker` and `end`, or '' when the marker is absent. */
+function between(text: string, marker: string, end: string, fromEnd = false): string {
+  const index = fromEnd ? text.lastIndexOf(marker) : text.indexOf(marker)
+
+  if (index < 0) {
+    return ''
+  }
+
+  const tail = text.slice(index + marker.length)
+  const stop = tail.indexOf(end)
+
+  return (stop >= 0 ? tail.slice(0, stop) : tail).trim()
+}
+
+/**
+ * The invocation a scaffolded turn came from (`/work fix the leak`), or null
+ * when `text` is ordinary user prose that should render as written.
+ */
+export function skillInvocationText(text: string): null | string {
+  if (!text.startsWith(INVOCATION_PREFIX)) {
+    return null
+  }
+
+  const name = (NAME_RE.exec(text)?.[1] ?? '').trim()
+
+  if (!name) {
+    return null
+  }
+
+  // Bundle headers already carry their typed "/a /b" keys; a single skill is
+  // a bare name. The single-skill instruction trails the body (which may quote
+  // the marker), so match it from the end.
+  const label = name.startsWith('/') ? name : `/${name}`
+
+  const instruction = text.includes(BUNDLE_MARKER)
+    ? between(text, BUNDLE_INSTRUCTION, BUNDLE_SKILL_BLOCK)
+    : text.includes(SINGLE_MARKER)
+      ? between(text, SINGLE_INSTRUCTION, RUNTIME_NOTE, true)
+      : ''
+
+  return instruction ? `${label} ${instruction.replace(/\s+/g, ' ')}` : label
+}
diff --git a/tests/test_tui_gateway_server.py b/tests/test_tui_gateway_server.py
index 1425e6dd75e..7e638493020 100644
--- a/tests/test_tui_gateway_server.py
+++ b/tests/test_tui_gateway_server.py
@@ -1753,6 +1753,93 @@ def test_history_to_messages_drops_display_hidden_scaffolding():
     assert all("api_content" not in m for m in projected)
 
 
+def test_history_to_messages_projects_a_skill_turn_to_its_invocation():
+    # A /skill invocation is persisted EXPANDED: the activation note plus the
+    # entire skill body. That payload is model-facing scaffolding -- this
+    # projection is the single display source every client reads, so it must
+    # hand back the invocation the user typed and never the body. Without it a
+    # chat bubble renders the whole skill as if the user had written it.
+    scaffolded = (
+        '[IMPORTANT: The user has invoked the "work" skill, indicating they '
+        "want you to follow its instructions. The full skill content is "
+        "loaded below.]\n\n"
+        "# /work\n\nSPIN UP A WORKTREE, never the primary checkout.\n\n"
+        "The user has provided the following instruction alongside the skill "
+        "invocation: fix the title leak"
+    )
+
+    history = [
+        {"role": "user", "content": scaffolded},
+        {"role": "assistant", "content": "on it"},
+    ]
+
+    assert server._history_to_messages(history) == [
+        {
+            "role": "user",
+            "text": "/work fix the title leak",
+            "display_kind": "skill_invocation",
+        },
+        {"role": "assistant", "text": "on it"},
+    ]
+
+
+def test_history_to_messages_projects_a_bare_skill_turn_to_the_command():
+    scaffolded = (
+        '[IMPORTANT: The user has invoked the "work" skill, indicating they '
+        "want you to follow its instructions. The full skill content is "
+        "loaded below.]\n\n# /work\n\nSPIN UP A WORKTREE."
+    )
+
+    assert server._history_to_messages([{"role": "user", "content": scaffolded}]) == [
+        {"role": "user", "text": "/work", "display_kind": "skill_invocation"}
+    ]
+
+
+def test_expand_skill_invocation_for_replay_round_trips_the_projection(
+    tmp_path, monkeypatch
+):
+    # Rewind/regenerate replays a turn from what the transcript SHOWS, and a
+    # skill turn shows its invocation. Re-running that verbatim would send the
+    # agent the literal "/work fix it" instead of the skill, so the server
+    # re-expands it — the exact inverse of _skill_scaffold_projection, with the
+    # body never leaving the server.
+    import agent.skill_commands as skill_commands
+    import agent.skill_utils as skill_utils
+    import tools.skills_tool as skills_tool
+
+    skills_dir = tmp_path / "skills"
+    (skills_dir / "worktree-kickoff").mkdir(parents=True)
+    (skills_dir / "worktree-kickoff" / "SKILL.md").write_text(
+        "---\nname: worktree-kickoff\ndescription: Spin up a worktree\n---\n\n"
+        "# kickoff\n\nSPIN UP A WORKTREE, never the primary checkout.\n"
+    )
+    monkeypatch.setattr(skills_tool, "SKILLS_DIR", skills_dir)
+    monkeypatch.setattr(skill_utils, "get_external_skills_dirs", lambda *a, **k: [])
+    monkeypatch.setattr(skill_commands, "_skill_commands", {})
+    monkeypatch.setattr(skill_commands, "_skill_commands_platform", None)
+    skill_commands.scan_skill_commands()
+
+    expanded = server._expand_skill_invocation_for_replay(
+        "/worktree-kickoff fix it", "task-1"
+    )
+
+    assert "SPIN UP A WORKTREE" in expanded
+    assert server._skill_scaffold_projection(expanded) == "/worktree-kickoff fix it"
+
+
+def test_expand_skill_invocation_for_replay_leaves_ordinary_text_alone(monkeypatch):
+    import agent.skill_commands as skill_commands
+    import agent.skill_utils as skill_utils
+
+    monkeypatch.setattr(skill_utils, "get_external_skills_dirs", lambda *a, **k: [])
+    monkeypatch.setattr(skill_commands, "_skill_commands", {})
+    monkeypatch.setattr(skill_commands, "_skill_commands_platform", None)
+
+    assert server._expand_skill_invocation_for_replay("just words", "t") == "just words"
+    # A core slash command is not a skill — nothing to expand.
+    assert server._expand_skill_invocation_for_replay("/status", "t") == "/status"
+
+
 def test_history_to_messages_types_a_legacy_auto_continue_row():
     # A crash-interrupted turn used to be typed only AFTER it finished, so a
     # turn killed a second time (or any row written before turn-start typing
diff --git a/tests/tui_gateway/test_protocol.py b/tests/tui_gateway/test_protocol.py
index a32fea2768f..7e55821301f 100644
--- a/tests/tui_gateway/test_protocol.py
+++ b/tests/tui_gateway/test_protocol.py
@@ -1592,6 +1592,8 @@ def test_slash_exec_routes_custom_skill_bundle_away_from_worker(server):
         "type": "send",
         "message": fake_msg,
         "notice": "⚡ Loading bundle: analysis-pack (2 skills)",
+        # UIs render this invocation; `message` stays model-facing scaffolding.
+        "display": "/analysis-pack",
     }
     assert worker.calls == []
 
@@ -2018,6 +2020,8 @@ def test_command_dispatch_returns_custom_bundle_payload(server):
         "type": "send",
         "message": fake_msg,
         "notice": "⚡ Loading bundle: review-suite (3 skills)",
+        # UIs render this invocation; `message` stays model-facing scaffolding.
+        "display": "/review-suite",
     }
     build_bundle.assert_called_once_with(
         "/review-suite",
diff --git a/tui_gateway/server.py b/tui_gateway/server.py
index f6f7241da89..b555504dfe2 100644
--- a/tui_gateway/server.py
+++ b/tui_gateway/server.py
@@ -33,6 +33,7 @@ from hermes_cli.env_loader import load_hermes_dotenv
 from utils import is_truthy_value
 from tools.environments.local import hermes_subprocess_env
 from agent.replay_cleanup import sanitize_replay_history
+from agent.skill_commands import describe_skill_invocation
 from agent.conversation_loop import INTERRUPT_WAITING_FOR_MODEL_PREFIX
 from tui_gateway import git_probe
 from tui_gateway.turn_marker import (
@@ -6237,6 +6238,51 @@ def _is_display_hidden_marker(role: str | None, text: str) -> bool:
     return role == "user" and text.lstrip().startswith("[System:")
 
 
+def _skill_scaffold_projection(content_text: str) -> str:
+    """Return the invocation a slash-skill-expanded turn came from, else "".
+
+    A ``/skill`` invocation expands into a model-facing message that embeds the
+    whole skill body. That payload belongs to the agent — every UI renders the
+    invocation (``/work fix the leak``) instead, so no surface can leak the
+    body into a chat bubble.
+    """
+    return describe_skill_invocation(content_text, separator=" ") or ""
+
+
+def _expand_skill_invocation_for_replay(text: str, task_id: str) -> str:
+    """Re-expand a projected `/skill` invocation before re-running that turn.
+
+    The inverse of :func:`_skill_scaffold_projection`. Because a skill turn is
+    displayed as its invocation, a rewind/regenerate hands us back
+    ``/work fix the leak`` rather than the body the agent originally saw —
+    re-running that verbatim would drop the skill. Re-expanding here keeps the
+    body server-side (no client ever holds it) and makes the replayed turn
+    identical to the original.
+
+    Returns *text* unchanged when it isn't a resolvable skill invocation.
+    """
+    head, _, arg = (text or "").strip().partition(" ")
+    if not head.startswith("/"):
+        return text
+
+    try:
+        from agent.skill_commands import (
+            build_skill_invocation_message,
+            resolve_skill_command_key,
+        )
+
+        cmd_key = resolve_skill_command_key(head.lstrip("/"))
+        if cmd_key is None:
+            return text
+
+        return build_skill_invocation_message(cmd_key, arg.strip(), task_id=task_id) or text
+    except Exception:
+        # A skill that no longer resolves (renamed, disabled, external dir
+        # gone) must not break the rewind — replay the text as typed.
+        logger.debug("skill re-expansion failed for replay", exc_info=True)
+        return text
+
+
 # Opening of the crash-recovery note synthesized by _auto_continue_note.
 # Matched (not just built) so a row persisted before the display type was
 # stamped at turn start still reads as a timeline event, and to recognize the
@@ -6319,6 +6365,14 @@ def _history_to_messages(history: list[dict]) -> list[dict]:
         if not content_text.strip() and not has_reasoning:
             continue
         msg = {"role": role, "text": content_text}
+        if role == "user":
+            invocation = _skill_scaffold_projection(content_text)
+            if invocation:
+                # Show the invocation, never the expanded skill body. The raw
+                # payload stays server-side: a rewind/regenerate re-sends the
+                # turn by ordinal, so no client needs it.
+                msg["text"] = invocation
+                msg["display_kind"] = "skill_invocation"
         if role == "assistant":
             for key in reasoning_keys:
                 if key in m and m.get(key) is not None:
@@ -10865,6 +10919,14 @@ def _(rid, params: dict) -> dict:
     session, err = _sess_nowait(params, rid)
     if err:
         return err
+    if truncate_user_ordinal is not None and isinstance(text, str):
+        # A rewind/regenerate replays a turn from what the transcript shows. A
+        # skill turn shows its invocation, so re-expand it here — otherwise
+        # re-running `/work fix it` sends the agent nine literal characters
+        # instead of the skill it originally loaded.
+        text = _expand_skill_invocation_for_replay(
+            text, str(session.get("session_key") or "")
+        )
     isolation_cfg = _load_dashboard_process_isolation_config()
     turn_isolation = _session_uses_compute_host(session, isolation_cfg)
     # Re-bind to the current client transport for this request. This keeps
@@ -15483,6 +15545,9 @@ def _(rid, params: dict) -> dict:
                 "type": "send",
                 "message": msg,
                 "notice": notice,
+                # UIs render this, never `message` — the expanded bundle body
+                # is model-facing scaffolding (see _skill_scaffold_projection).
+                "display": _skill_scaffold_projection(msg),
             },
         )
 
@@ -15505,6 +15570,9 @@ def _(rid, params: dict) -> dict:
                         "type": "skill",
                         "message": msg,
                         "name": cmds[key].get("name", name),
+                        # UIs render this, never `message` — the expanded skill
+                        # body is model-facing scaffolding.
+                        "display": _skill_scaffold_projection(msg),
                     },
                 )
     except Exception:
diff --git a/ui-tui/src/__tests__/createSlashHandler.test.ts b/ui-tui/src/__tests__/createSlashHandler.test.ts
index d00646ac900..d4c8f6c44ce 100644
--- a/ui-tui/src/__tests__/createSlashHandler.test.ts
+++ b/ui-tui/src/__tests__/createSlashHandler.test.ts
@@ -810,8 +810,10 @@ describe('createSlashHandler', () => {
     expect(ctx.gateway.gw.request).not.toHaveBeenCalled()
   })
 
-  it('falls through to command.dispatch for skill commands and sends the message', async () => {
-    const skillMessage = 'Use this skill to do X.\n\n## Steps\n1. First step'
+  it('falls through to command.dispatch for skill commands, sending the body but showing the invocation', async () => {
+    const skillMessage =
+      '[IMPORTANT: The user has invoked the "hermes-agent-dev" skill, indicating they want you to follow its instructions.\n' +
+      'The full skill content is loaded below.]\n\nUse this skill to do X.\n\n## Steps\n1. First step'
 
     const ctx = buildCtx({
       gateway: {
@@ -823,7 +825,12 @@ describe('createSlashHandler', () => {
             }
 
             if (method === 'command.dispatch') {
-              return Promise.resolve({ type: 'skill', message: skillMessage, name: 'hermes-agent-dev' })
+              return Promise.resolve({
+                type: 'skill',
+                message: skillMessage,
+                name: 'hermes-agent-dev',
+                display: '/hermes-agent-dev'
+              })
             }
 
             return Promise.resolve({})
@@ -836,9 +843,12 @@ describe('createSlashHandler', () => {
     const h = createSlashHandler(ctx)
     expect(h('/hermes-agent-dev')).toBe(true)
     await vi.waitFor(() => {
-      expect(ctx.transcript.sys).toHaveBeenCalledWith('⚡ loading skill: hermes-agent-dev')
+      expect(ctx.transcript.send).toHaveBeenCalledWith(skillMessage, true, '/hermes-agent-dev')
     })
-    expect(ctx.transcript.send).toHaveBeenCalledWith(skillMessage)
+    // The expanded skill body is model-facing: no transcript line may carry it.
+    for (const [line] of ctx.transcript.sys.mock.calls) {
+      expect(line).not.toContain('Use this skill to do X')
+    }
   })
 
   it('handles command.dispatch payloads returned directly by slash.exec', async () => {
diff --git a/ui-tui/src/app/createSlashHandler.ts b/ui-tui/src/app/createSlashHandler.ts
index dc798e842c6..f0d38257e26 100644
--- a/ui-tui/src/app/createSlashHandler.ts
+++ b/ui-tui/src/app/createSlashHandler.ts
@@ -104,10 +104,22 @@ export function createSlashHandler(ctx: SlashHandlerContext): (cmd: string) => b
         return void handler(`/${d.target}${argTail}`)
       }
 
-      if (d.type === 'skill') {
-        sys(`⚡ loading skill: ${d.name}`)
+      // A skill/bundle dispatch's `message` is the expanded skill body —
+      // model-facing scaffolding. `display` is the invocation the gateway
+      // projected; the transcript shows that instead. An ordinary send has no
+      // projection and goes through unchanged. No client-side fallback here:
+      // the TUI spawns its gateway from this same checkout, so the two can't
+      // version-skew (unlike the desktop, which can meet an older backend).
+      const sendDispatch = (display: string | undefined, message: string) => {
+        const shown = display?.trim()
 
-        return d.message?.trim() ? send(d.message) : sys(`/${parsed.name}: skill payload missing message`)
+        return shown ? send(message, true, shown) : send(message)
+      }
+
+      if (d.type === 'skill') {
+        return d.message?.trim()
+          ? sendDispatch(d.display, d.message)
+          : sys(`/${parsed.name}: skill payload missing message`)
       }
 
       if (d.type === 'send') {
@@ -115,7 +127,7 @@ export function createSlashHandler(ctx: SlashHandlerContext): (cmd: string) => b
           sys(d.notice)
         }
 
-        return d.message?.trim() ? send(d.message) : sys(`/${parsed.name}: empty message`)
+        return d.message?.trim() ? sendDispatch(d.display, d.message) : sys(`/${parsed.name}: empty message`)
       }
 
       if (d.type === 'prefill') {
diff --git a/ui-tui/src/app/interfaces.ts b/ui-tui/src/app/interfaces.ts
index d82fa1a90ed..1a446f69e15 100644
--- a/ui-tui/src/app/interfaces.ts
+++ b/ui-tui/src/app/interfaces.ts
@@ -526,7 +526,7 @@ export interface SlashHandlerContext {
   transcript: {
     page: (text: string, title?: string) => void
     panel: (title: string, sections: PanelSection[]) => void
-    send: (text: string) => void
+    send: (text: string, showUserMessage?: boolean, displayText?: string) => void
     setHistoryItems: StateSetter<Msg[]>
     sys: (text: string) => void
     trimLastExchange: (items: Msg[]) => Msg[]
diff --git a/ui-tui/src/app/submissionCore.ts b/ui-tui/src/app/submissionCore.ts
index 534ef6c8f03..98b416c44d9 100644
--- a/ui-tui/src/app/submissionCore.ts
+++ b/ui-tui/src/app/submissionCore.ts
@@ -42,7 +42,16 @@ export function markSubmitting(): void {
 // Submit a ready prompt (already resolved to be neither a slash command nor a
 // shell escape, with a live session). Pulled out of useSubmission so the
 // synchronous-busy invariant above is unit-testable without React test infra.
-export function submitPrompt(text: string, deps: SubmitPromptDeps, showUserMessage = true): void {
+//
+// `displayOverride` is what the transcript shows when it differs from what the
+// agent receives — a `/skill` invocation expands into the whole skill body, and
+// that scaffolding is model-facing only.
+export function submitPrompt(
+  text: string,
+  deps: SubmitPromptDeps,
+  showUserMessage = true,
+  displayOverride?: string
+): void {
   const sid = getUiState().sid
 
   if (!sid) {
@@ -63,7 +72,7 @@ export function submitPrompt(text: string, deps: SubmitPromptDeps, showUserMessa
     deps.setLastUserMsg(text)
 
     if (show) {
-      deps.appendMessage({ role: 'user', text: displayText })
+      deps.appendMessage({ role: 'user', text: displayOverride || displayText })
     }
 
     patchUiState({ busy: true, status: 'running…' })
diff --git a/ui-tui/src/app/useSubmission.ts b/ui-tui/src/app/useSubmission.ts
index a70b1fd7390..0ced5f0b8a2 100644
--- a/ui-tui/src/app/useSubmission.ts
+++ b/ui-tui/src/app/useSubmission.ts
@@ -67,7 +67,7 @@ export function useSubmission(opts: UseSubmissionOptions) {
   }, [composerState.input, composerState.inputBuf])
 
   const send = useCallback(
-    (text: string, showUserMessage = true) => {
+    (text: string, showUserMessage = true, displayText?: string) => {
       const expand = expandSnips(composerState.pasteSnips)
 
       submitPrompt(
@@ -80,7 +80,8 @@ export function useSubmission(opts: UseSubmissionOptions) {
           setLastUserMsg,
           sys
         },
-        showUserMessage
+        showUserMessage,
+        displayText
       )
     },
     [appendMessage, composerActions, composerState.pasteSnips, gw, setLastUserMsg, sys]
diff --git a/ui-tui/src/gatewayTypes.ts b/ui-tui/src/gatewayTypes.ts
index 63219a1ab71..41c5063295e 100644
--- a/ui-tui/src/gatewayTypes.ts
+++ b/ui-tui/src/gatewayTypes.ts
@@ -70,8 +70,8 @@ export type {
 export type CommandDispatchResponse =
   | { output?: string; type: 'exec' | 'plugin' }
   | { target: string; type: 'alias' }
-  | { message?: string; name: string; type: 'skill' }
-  | { message: string; notice?: string; type: 'send' }
+  | { display?: string; message?: string; name: string; type: 'skill' }
+  | { display?: string; message: string; notice?: string; type: 'send' }
   | { message: string; notice?: string; type: 'prefill' }
 
 // ── Config ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
diff --git a/ui-tui/src/lib/rpc.ts b/ui-tui/src/lib/rpc.ts
index fda9694ddeb..f54fb166f77 100644
--- a/ui-tui/src/lib/rpc.ts
+++ b/ui-tui/src/lib/rpc.ts
@@ -22,15 +22,18 @@ export const asCommandDispatch = (value: unknown): CommandDispatchResponse | nul
     return { type: 'alias', target: o.target }
   }
 
+  const str = (value: unknown) => (typeof value === 'string' ? value : undefined)
+
   if (t === 'skill' && typeof o.name === 'string') {
-    return { type: 'skill', name: o.name, message: typeof o.message === 'string' ? o.message : undefined }
+    return { type: 'skill', name: o.name, message: str(o.message), display: str(o.display) }
   }
 
   if (t === 'send' && typeof o.message === 'string') {
     return {
       type: 'send',
       message: o.message,
-      notice: typeof o.notice === 'string' ? o.notice : undefined
+      notice: str(o.notice),
+      display: str(o.display)
     }
   }