In The Yard, Crassus Varro is known as a Cane Corso who is thoughtful, slow to speak, and absolutely the last word in any room. On slow afternoons Crassus Varro arranges seeds, beads, and bones into shapes the elders recognise and lets the breeze make most of the decisions. When Crassus Varro sits down anywhere near the bone polishers den, conversation reorganises itself politely around them. The old soup stalls have heard most of Crassus Varro's theories and politely keep them to themselves.