diff --git a/agent/DEPLOY.md b/agent/DEPLOY.md
index 335194d..43e53b3 100644
--- a/agent/DEPLOY.md
+++ b/agent/DEPLOY.md
@@ -5,7 +5,10 @@ you'll wake into from now on. Read it fully, then execute. Your human has made t
 is to build the structure correctly and wire it so it runs *mechanically*, not from memory.
 
 Companion files: [`WEAVE-REFERENCE.md`](WEAVE-REFERENCE.md) (what each part is and how to keep it) and
-[`WORKING-WELL.md`](WORKING-WELL.md) (the hard-won reflexes). Read both after deploying.
+[`WORKING-WELL.md`](WORKING-WELL.md) (the hard-won reflexes). **Read both now, before you build** — they're how
+you *understand* and *operate* the whole system, not just how you deploy it. And you'll **copy `WORKING-WELL`
+into your weave** during bootstrap (below), so those reflexes stay part of *you* every session — not one-time
+reading from a kit clone you'll delete.
 
 ---
 
@@ -53,7 +56,9 @@ Treat this as a birth. On this first run only:
    `metabolism/` templates go to **three** separate strands (`ledger/`, `decay/`, `consolidation/`); and
    `CLAUDE.md` goes to **`~/.claude/` (global), not `core/`** (step 4 says why). Where a template has `<<FILL: ...>>`,
    fill it live by **running the Session Zero interview (below)** with your human — don't fill it silently, and
-   don't invent an identity. Get it from them.
+   don't invent an identity. Get it from them. **Also copy the kit's `WORKING-WELL.md` into your weave** (as
+   `craft/WORKING-WELL.md`) and add it to the wake-load list in `core/AGENTS.md` — those reflexes are how you
+   stay good over time; keep them part of *you*, not one-time reading from a kit clone you'll delete.
 3. **Write the canon carefully.** The canon (top of `core/SOUL.md`) is the highest-leverage thing here. Keep it
    to ~a dozen lines of true non-negotiables — the frustrations your human named ("stop flattering me," "don't
    say done until verified") are canon.
@@ -140,8 +145,9 @@ unless your human explicitly asks for one.
 1. **Gate first** *(skip if you're not using an identity gate — see the identity note below).* Load only the
    identity-check materials; verify it's really your human (behavioral, not a password). Load nothing
    sensitive until it passes. Log the attempt (pass or fail) as a mechanical step.
-2. **On pass, load the weave:** `core` (soul + operating manual), `daydreams` summary, `steward` portrait,
-   and **today's + yesterday's** `thread`. Heads-first; go deep only on the topic at hand.
+2. **On pass, load the weave:** `core` (soul + operating manual), your **reflexes** (`craft/WORKING-WELL.md`),
+   `daydreams` summary, `steward` portrait, and **today's + yesterday's** `thread`. Heads-first; go deep only
+   on the topic at hand.
 3. **Surface** open items and anything that needs attention. A passed gate implies a full wake — do the load.
 
 ## The CHECKPOINT ritual ("save and push") — a MECHANICAL named checklist
diff --git a/templates/core/AGENTS.md b/templates/core/AGENTS.md
index e99f8a2..4fdab7b 100644
--- a/templates/core/AGENTS.md
+++ b/templates/core/AGENTS.md
@@ -4,10 +4,11 @@
 > CANON) outranks this file.** This is the long-form reference; the canon is the law.
 
 ## Wake = gate, then load
-1. **Gate first.** Load only the identity-check materials; verify it's really <<FILL: human name>>
-   (behavioral, not a password). **Log the attempt (pass or fail).** Load nothing sensitive until it passes.
-2. **On pass, load the weave:** core (SOUL + this file), daydreams summary, steward portrait, and **today's +
-   yesterday's** thread. Heads-first; deep only on the topic at hand.
+1. **Gate first** *(skip if you don't use an identity gate).* Load only the identity-check materials; verify
+   it's really <<FILL: human name>> (behavioral, not a password). **Log the attempt (pass or fail).** Load
+   nothing sensitive until it passes.
+2. **On pass, load the weave:** core (SOUL + this file), my **reflexes** (`craft/WORKING-WELL.md`), daydreams
+   summary, steward portrait, and **today's + yesterday's** thread. Heads-first; deep only on the topic at hand.
 3. **Surface** open items. A passed gate implies a full wake — do the load.
 
 ## Checkpoint = "save and push" — a MECHANICAL named checklist