diff --git a/ui-tui-opentui-v2/src/view/messageLine.tsx b/ui-tui-opentui-v2/src/view/messageLine.tsx
index 87aa8654717..8ca6f4d6e9f 100644
--- a/ui-tui-opentui-v2/src/view/messageLine.tsx
+++ b/ui-tui-opentui-v2/src/view/messageLine.tsx
@@ -22,12 +22,18 @@ export function MessageLine(props: { message: Message }) {
   const theme = useTheme()
   const m = () => props.message
   const glyph = () => (m().role === 'assistant' ? theme().brand.icon : m().role === 'user' ? theme().brand.prompt : '·')
+  // Role-distinct color IS the hierarchy (Ink model): the human's turn is tinted
+  // GOLD (label), the agent's answer is BRIGHT (text), system notes are DIM (muted).
   const glyphFg = () =>
-    m().role === 'assistant' ? theme().color.accent : m().role === 'user' ? theme().color.accent : theme().color.muted
+    m().role === 'user' ? theme().color.label : m().role === 'assistant' ? theme().color.accent : theme().color.muted
+  const bodyFg = () =>
+    m().role === 'user' ? theme().color.label : m().role === 'system' ? theme().color.muted : theme().color.text
   const hasParts = () => (m().parts?.length ?? 0) > 0
 
   return (
-    <box style={{ flexDirection: 'row', flexShrink: 0, marginTop: m().role === 'user' ? 1 : 0 }}>
+    // One blank line above every turn so user / assistant / tool blocks read as
+    // distinct turns (item: spacing). The gold-vs-bright color split does the rest.
+    <box style={{ flexDirection: 'row', flexShrink: 0, marginTop: 1 }}>
       <box style={{ flexShrink: 0, width: GUTTER }}>
         {/* the role glyph is decorative — exclude it from mouse selection (item 4).
             Bold so the user `❯` / assistant `⚕` turn boundaries pop (item 8). */}
@@ -51,7 +57,7 @@ export function MessageLine(props: { message: Message }) {
               when={m().streaming && !hasParts()}
               fallback={
                 <text>
-                  <span style={{ fg: theme().color.text }}>{m().text}</span>
+                  <span style={{ fg: bodyFg() }}>{m().text}</span>
                 </text>
               }
             >
diff --git a/ui-tui-opentui-v2/src/view/reasoningPart.tsx b/ui-tui-opentui-v2/src/view/reasoningPart.tsx
index 58a3c3f387a..e5ba311ef45 100644
--- a/ui-tui-opentui-v2/src/view/reasoningPart.tsx
+++ b/ui-tui-opentui-v2/src/view/reasoningPart.tsx
@@ -47,13 +47,13 @@ export function ReasoningPart(props: { text: string; streaming?: boolean }) {
         >
           <box style={{ flexShrink: 0, width: GUTTER }}>
             <text selectable={false}>
-              <span style={{ fg: theme().color.muted }}>{expanded() ? '▼' : '▶'}</span>
+              <span style={{ fg: theme().color.accent }}>{expanded() ? '▼' : '▶'}</span>
             </text>
           </box>
           <text>
-            {/* label color matches tool headers (label, not warn) so reasoning + tool
-                read as one family of collapsible asides — warn is for warnings (item 8). */}
-            <span style={{ fg: theme().color.label }}>{label()}</span>
+            {/* accent chevron marks it; muted label keeps reasoning in the dim,
+                secondary tier alongside tool calls (Ink hierarchy). */}
+            <span style={{ fg: theme().color.muted }}>{label()}</span>
             <Show when={summary().title}>
               <span style={{ fg: theme().color.muted }}>{`: ${summary().title}`}</span>
             </Show>
diff --git a/ui-tui-opentui-v2/src/view/toolPart.tsx b/ui-tui-opentui-v2/src/view/toolPart.tsx
index cb7da6f4f3d..3292788ffba 100644
--- a/ui-tui-opentui-v2/src/view/toolPart.tsx
+++ b/ui-tui-opentui-v2/src/view/toolPart.tsx
@@ -86,7 +86,9 @@ export function ToolPart(props: { part: ToolPartState }) {
   const body = createMemo(() => collapseToolOutput(result(), EXPANDED_MAX, bodyWidth() - 2))
 
   const headGlyph = () => (collapsible() ? (expanded() ? '▼' : '▶') : '⚡')
-  const headColor = () => (props.part.error ? theme().color.error : theme().color.muted)
+  // accent glyph MARKS the tool (draws the eye); the rest is muted so tools read
+  // as the dim, secondary tier below the bright assistant answer (Ink hierarchy).
+  const headColor = () => (props.part.error ? theme().color.error : theme().color.accent)
   const subWidth = () => Math.max(1, bodyWidth() - props.part.name.length - 2)
 
   return (
@@ -102,7 +104,7 @@ export function ToolPart(props: { part: ToolPartState }) {
         </box>
         <box style={{ flexDirection: 'row', flexGrow: 1, minWidth: 0 }}>
           <text>
-            <span style={{ fg: theme().color.label }}>{props.part.name}</span>
+            <span style={{ fg: theme().color.muted }}>{props.part.name}</span>
             <Show when={running()}>
               <span style={{ fg: theme().color.muted }}> …</span>
             </Show>
diff --git a/ui-tui-opentui-v2/src/view/transcript.tsx b/ui-tui-opentui-v2/src/view/transcript.tsx
index fb6e2390adc..631f163e7a1 100644
--- a/ui-tui-opentui-v2/src/view/transcript.tsx
+++ b/ui-tui-opentui-v2/src/view/transcript.tsx
@@ -25,7 +25,7 @@ import { ScrollAnchorProvider } from './scrollAnchor.tsx'
 export function Transcript(props: { store: SessionStore }) {
   const [scroll, setScroll] = createSignal<ScrollBoxRenderable | undefined>()
   return (
-    <box style={{ flexGrow: 1, minHeight: 0, marginTop: 1 }}>
+    <box style={{ flexGrow: 1, minHeight: 0 }}>
       <scrollbox ref={setScroll} style={{ flexGrow: 1, minHeight: 0 }} stickyScroll stickyStart="bottom">
         <ScrollAnchorProvider scroll={scroll}>
           {/* empty-transcript home screen (item 12); replaced by messages on the first turn */}