[BUG] Lazy-loaded skills are not fully registered until first explicit invocation

Preflight Checklist

• [x] I have searched existing issues and this hasn't been reported yet
• [x] This is a single bug report (please file separate reports for different bugs)
• [x] I am using the latest version of Claude Code

What's Wrong?

Skills are not fully loaded until they have been explicitly invoked for the first time. Once explicitly invoked, they are available via natural language prompts.

What Should Happen?

It seems like one of the following should address this:

• The skill should be available on the first natural language prompt.
• There should be a way to configure skills that force them to be fully loaded.
• The skills documentation should mention this behavior more explicitly (it indirectly mentions the symptoms in troubleshooting but not the cause).

Error Messages/Logs

Steps to Reproduce

• Create a skill that is meant to replace existing functionality (in this case, a git-review skill with specific code review requirements -- see attached).

SKILL.md

• Try to execute the skill using natural language (e.g., "code review my last 2 commits").
• Existing functionality is executed instead of the skill, despite the skill's description stating "ALWAYS invoke this skill..."
• Explicitly invoke the skill - /git-review
• Execute the skill using natural language using the same prompt as before -- the skill now executes

Claude Model

Sonnet (default)

Is this a regression?

I don't know

Last Working Version

_No response_

Claude Code Version

2.1.23 (Claude Code)

Platform

Anthropic API

Operating System

Windows

Terminal/Shell

PowerShell

Additional Information

_No response_