diff --git a/components/ai-elements/reasoning.tsx b/components/ai-elements/reasoning.tsx
index 4a3de8d..f21942f 100644
--- a/components/ai-elements/reasoning.tsx
+++ b/components/ai-elements/reasoning.tsx
@@ -137,7 +137,7 @@ const defaultGetThinkingMessage = (isStreaming: boolean) => {
   if (isStreaming) {
     return <Shimmer duration={1}>Thinking...</Shimmer>;
   }
-  return <p>AGENT THINKING</p>;
+  return <p>AGENT’S THINKING</p>;
 };
 
 export const ReasoningTrigger = memo(
diff --git a/components/chat.tsx b/components/chat.tsx
index 14b60a0..4fc1115 100644
--- a/components/chat.tsx
+++ b/components/chat.tsx
@@ -1259,7 +1259,7 @@ export function Chat({
 										    User text renders plain — the model's LaTeX pipeline is not
 										    applied to learner-authored text ($ stays $, no surprises).
 										    Rendered WITHOUT the Message wrapper — that is the bubble. */
-											<div data-testid="user-message" className="my-1 w-full border-l-2 border-muted-foreground/30 pl-[calc(1ch-2px)] font-ui text-xs">
+											<div data-testid="user-message" className="my-1 w-full border-l-2 border-muted-foreground/30 pl-[calc(3ch-2px)] font-ui text-xs">
 												{/* The rail GROUPS (owner round 4, 2026-10-05): the YOU heading
 												    sits INSIDE the rail, same mono-xs register and same 1ch
 												    rail as the thinking rows — one quote geometry. */}
@@ -1365,10 +1365,10 @@ export function Chat({
 							    entered by external discovery (wake) / the poll
 							    fallback. Never collapsible itself. */}
 							{(status === "submitted" || turnInFlight) && (
-								<span className="flex items-center gap-2">
+								<span className="flex items-center gap-2 font-ui text-xs font-medium uppercase tracking-wide text-muted-foreground">
 									<BrailleSpinner label="Thinking" />
-									<Shimmer duration={1} className="text-sm">
-										Thinking…
+									<Shimmer duration={1}>
+										THINKING…
 									</Shimmer>
 								</span>
 							)}
diff --git a/components/question-dock.tsx b/components/question-dock.tsx
index ecd9ea9..752ae70 100644
--- a/components/question-dock.tsx
+++ b/components/question-dock.tsx
@@ -820,9 +820,10 @@ function QuestionDockForm({
 									onEscape();
 									return;
 								}
-								// ⌘↵ on macOS, Ctrl↵ elsewhere — the Gmail convention; plain
-								// Enter stays a newline (this field is for dumping).
-								if (e.key === "Enter" && (e.metaKey || e.ctrlKey)) {
+								// THE STANDARD CHORD (owner round 5, 2026-10-05): Enter
+								// submits, Shift+Enter is a newline, ⌘/Ctrl+Enter works
+								// too — identical to the practice dock and the composer.
+								if (e.key === "Enter" && (!e.shiftKey || e.metaKey || e.ctrlKey)) {
 									e.preventDefault();
 									submit();
 								}
@@ -838,11 +839,9 @@ function QuestionDockForm({
 						/>
 					)}
 					<div className="flex items-center justify-between gap-2 p-1">
-						{qd.mode !== "text" && (
-							<span aria-hidden className="pl-1.5 text-xs text-muted-foreground">
-								⌘/Ctrl + ↵ submits
-							</span>
-						)}
+						<span aria-hidden className="pl-1.5 text-xs text-muted-foreground">
+								↵ submits · ⇧↵ newline
+						</span>
 						<Button
 							type="submit"
 							disabled={!canSubmit}
diff --git a/components/thinking-block.tsx b/components/thinking-block.tsx
index 5adbbaa..dc259df 100644
--- a/components/thinking-block.tsx
+++ b/components/thinking-block.tsx
@@ -33,16 +33,18 @@ export function ThinkingBlock({
 	return (
 		/* The rail GROUPS and the rail IS THE MISSING CHARACTER (owner
 		   rounds, 2026-10-05): the heading sits INSIDE the rail, and the
-		   rail's full width (border + padding) is exactly ONE CHARACTER of
-		   the mono heading font — 'YOUR THINKING' is one char shorter than
-		   'AGENT THINKING', so with the user row offset by the rail and the
-		   agent row flush, the chevrons line up vertically. The heading
+		   rail's full width (border + padding) is exactly THREE CHARACTERS of
+		   the mono heading font — 'YOUR THINKING' is three chars shorter
+		   than 'AGENT'S THINKING', so with the user row offset by the rail
+		   and the agent row flush, the chevrons line up vertically. Three
+		   (not one, owner round 5): the wider gap reads better than the
+		   cramped single-char rail. The heading
 		   register is the card eyebrows' small mono caps (text-xs = the
 		   11px rung). */
 		<div
 			data-testid={testId}
 			data-commit={dataCommit === undefined ? undefined : dataCommit ? "true" : "false"}
-			className="lh-card-enter my-1 w-full border-l-2 border-muted-foreground/30 pl-[calc(1ch-2px)] font-ui text-xs"
+			className="lh-card-enter my-1 w-full border-l-2 border-muted-foreground/30 pl-[calc(3ch-2px)] font-ui text-xs"
 		>
 			<button
 				type="button"
diff --git a/tests/render-cards.test.tsx b/tests/render-cards.test.tsx
index 51058a5..7e2209c 100644
--- a/tests/render-cards.test.tsx
+++ b/tests/render-cards.test.tsx
@@ -146,7 +146,7 @@ describe("render smoke tests", () => {
 		assert.match(html, /Why this answer\? What are you unsure about\?/, "placeholder invites, not apologizes");
 		assert.ok(!html.includes("optional"), "the field is never called optional");
 		assert.match(html, /Submit answer/, "send becomes Submit answer");
-		assert.match(html, /⌘\/Ctrl \+ ↵ submits/, "the ⌘/Ctrl+Enter shortcut is discoverable");
+		assert.match(html, /↵ submits · ⇧↵ newline/, "the standard chord is discoverable (owner round 5)");
 		// The v1 desync bug: options are buttons with ARIA roles, not native inputs.
 		assert.ok(!html.includes('type="radio"'), "no native radio inputs");
 		assert.ok(html.includes('role="radio"'), "button-based radio role present");