diff --git a/src/agent_comms/maintenance_barrier.py b/src/agent_comms/maintenance_barrier.py
index 3901015c0b..735965d87d 100644
--- a/src/agent_comms/maintenance_barrier.py
+++ b/src/agent_comms/maintenance_barrier.py
@@ -141,6 +141,10 @@ def hold_restore(cls, barrier: MaintenanceBarrier, operator: MaintenanceOperator
         drained()
 
 
+# The holding operation hands its nonce to its own child processes through this variable.
+HOLDER_NONCE = "AGENT_COMMS_MAINTENANCE_HOLDER"
+
+
 class MaintenanceStatus:
     """Absent witness is READY; stored phases derive from their record."""
 
@@ -154,6 +158,10 @@ def turn_pending(self) -> bool:
     def require_open(self) -> None:
         self.phase.new_sends.require_open()
 
+    def require_open_to(self, holder: str) -> None:
+        """Open, or held by ``holder``: the operation holding maintenance still runs its own reads."""
+        self.require_open()
+
 
 @dataclass(frozen=True)
 class MaintenanceOperator:
@@ -216,6 +224,10 @@ def successor(self, phase: type[MaintenancePhase], nonce: str) -> MaintenanceSta
                                 generation=self.generation + 1, operator=self.operator,
                                 nonce=nonce, phase=phase)
 
+    def require_open_to(self, holder: str) -> None:
+        if holder != self.nonce:
+            self.require_open()
+
     def require_draining(self) -> None:
         if self.phase is not DrainingPhase:
             raise ValueError('Only an acquired draining phase can be cleared')
@@ -300,7 +312,7 @@ def current_unlocked(self) -> MaintenanceStatus:
 
     def assert_open_unlocked(self) -> MaintenanceStatus:
         hold = self.current_unlocked()
-        hold.require_open()
+        hold.require_open_to(os.environ.get(HOLDER_NONCE, ""))
         return hold
 
     def read(self) -> MaintenanceStatus:
diff --git a/src/agent_comms/todos.py b/src/agent_comms/todos.py
index 6a9d18f50a..281e53ab5d 100644
--- a/src/agent_comms/todos.py
+++ b/src/agent_comms/todos.py
@@ -12,6 +12,7 @@
 import re
 import subprocess
 import sqlite3
+import sys
 import time
 import asyncio
 from abc import abstractmethod
@@ -758,7 +759,8 @@ class OrderWords(WireValue):
     # for long ordinary words with no slash or filename suffix.
     CITED: ClassVar[re.Pattern] = re.compile(
         r'(?m)^ {4}.*$|`[^`\n]*`|"[^"\n]*"|“[^”\n]*”|'
-        r'(?:(?<!\S)|(?<=[`"”]))(?:\S*/\S*|\S+\.(?:py|md|jsonl?|txt|png|toml|ts|log|patch)\b)')
+        r'(?:(?<!\S)|(?<=[`"”]))(?:\S*/\S*|\S+\.(?:py|md|jsonl?|txt|png|toml|ts|log|patch)\b)|'
+        r'\b\w+_\w+\b|\b[A-Z][a-z0-9]+[A-Z]\w*\b')  # identifiers are code, not prose
     REFUSED: ClassVar[re.Pattern]
     refusal: ClassVar[str]
     least_words: ClassVar[int] = 1
@@ -804,6 +806,13 @@ class PlainText(OrderWords):
     REFUSED = re.compile(r'\b(custody|admission|admit\w*|receipt\w*|checkpoint\w*|provenance|authority|authorities|witness\w*|lattice|surface|disposition\w*|invariant\w*|semantic\w*|ownership|lifecycle|acceptance|canonical|retained|borrow(?:ed|er|ers)?|bounded|certif\w*|recertif\w*|candidate|fence\w*|sidecar\w*|substrate|installed-path|source[- ]paired|exact[- ]head|integration owner|separately owned|follow-?up|remaining scope|not claimed|remains held|load[- ]bearing|cutover|carr(?:y|ies) across|declared dependency|qualifying)\b', re.I)
     refusal = "Jargon {1} hides what happened; say it plainly."
 
+    @staticmethod
+    def refuses(found: list[str]) -> bool:
+        """Flags, never blocks: a wording slip costs a note, not a resend."""
+        if found:
+            print(f"Flag: jargon {', '.join(found)} hides what happened; say it plainly.", file=sys.stderr)
+        return False
+
 
 class StrikeReason(PlainText):
     """What a unit did, plainly, in enough words to stand on the public record. A unit's
diff --git a/tools/upgrade_bus.py b/tools/upgrade_bus.py
index ab7e53b27c..62369f88d1 100644
--- a/tools/upgrade_bus.py
+++ b/tools/upgrade_bus.py
@@ -53,7 +53,7 @@
 from agent_comms.field_codec import FieldCodec
 from agent_comms.history_result import EverythingHistoryPageResult
 from agent_comms.host_services import HostService
-from agent_comms.maintenance_barrier import MaintenanceBarrier, MaintenanceOperator
+from agent_comms.maintenance_barrier import HOLDER_NONCE, MaintenanceBarrier, MaintenanceOperator
 from agent_comms.registry_store import RegistryStore
 from agent_comms.store_files import _store_lock
 from agent_comms.todos import PlannedInstallDeadline
@@ -265,6 +265,9 @@ def rehearse(root: Path, pending: tuple[Step, ...], stack: Stack, revisions: Rev
         copy_bus(root, copy)
         stack = replace(stack, home=rehearsal_home(Path(scratch), root, copy))
         stack.prepare_native()
+        # Hold the copy before reading it, exactly as the live run holds the bus.
+        os.environ[HOLDER_NONCE] = MaintenanceBarrier(copy / "registry.json").begin(
+            MaintenanceOperator("upgrade-bus")).nonce
         with transcripts_held(copy):
             before = bus_files(copy)
         stopping = before_stop(copy, pending, stack, revisions)
@@ -374,6 +377,7 @@ def live(checkout: Path, root: Path, current: str, target: str, pending: tuple[S
     before_stop(root, pending, staged, revisions)
     maintenance = MaintenanceBarrier(RegistryStore.at(root).path)
     held = maintenance.begin(MaintenanceOperator("upgrade-bus"))
+    os.environ[HOLDER_NONCE] = held.nonce  # this run's own CLI calls read under its hold
     lock = installed.lock
     try:
         installed.owners(root, "stop", running)