diff --git a/docs/.vitepress/components/DocCommunity.vue b/docs/.vitepress/components/DocCommunity.vue
index 7a987db58..af046fc51 100644
--- a/docs/.vitepress/components/DocCommunity.vue
+++ b/docs/.vitepress/components/DocCommunity.vue
@@ -34,12 +34,12 @@ const links = computed(() => [
           transition-colors duration-200 ease-in-out
         >
           <Icon
-            class="text-xl"
+            class="text-lg"
             :icon="link.icon"
           />
           <span>{{ link.label }}</span>
           <Icon
-            class="text-base"
+            class="text-sm"
             icon="lucide:arrow-up-right"
           />
         </a>
diff --git a/docs/.vitepress/components/DocTopbar.vue b/docs/.vitepress/components/DocTopbar.vue
index 14ba8cb44..207b2339d 100644
--- a/docs/.vitepress/components/DocTopbar.vue
+++ b/docs/.vitepress/components/DocTopbar.vue
@@ -6,7 +6,6 @@ import { useScroll } from '@vueuse/core'
 import { DialogContent, DialogDescription, DialogOverlay, DialogPortal, DialogRoot, DialogTitle, DialogTrigger } from 'reka-ui'
 import { useData, useRoute, withBase } from 'vitepress'
 import { computed, ref, toRefs, watch } from 'vue'
-import { useI18n } from 'vue-i18n'
 
 import DocSidebarItem from '../components/DocSidebarItem.vue'
 
@@ -14,7 +13,6 @@ import { flatten } from '../utils/flatten'
 
 const { path } = toRefs(useRoute())
 const { page, theme } = useData()
-const { t } = useI18n()
 
 const isSidebarOpen = ref(false)
 const sidebar = computed(() => (theme.value.sidebar as (DefaultTheme.SidebarItem & { icon?: string })[]))
@@ -24,17 +22,18 @@ const sectionTabs = computed(() => sidebar.value
     return {
       label: val.text,
       link: flatten(val.items ?? [], 'items').filter(i => !!i?.link)?.[0]?.link ?? val.link,
+      // Highlight by the section's own link; tab.link points at the first
+      // child page and would narrow the highlight to it.
+      highlight: val.link,
       icon: val.icon,
     }
   })
   .filter(i => !!i?.link),
 )
 
-function isCharacterPage(link?: string) {
-  if (!link)
-    return false
-
-  return link.includes('/characters') || link.includes('/characters/')
+function isTabActive(tab: { link?: string, highlight?: string }): boolean {
+  const prefix = (tab.highlight ?? tab.link)?.split('/').slice(0, -1).join('/') ?? ''
+  return withBase(`/${page.value.relativePath}`).includes(prefix)
 }
 
 const { arrivedState } = useScroll(globalThis.window)
@@ -55,28 +54,10 @@ watch(path, () => {
         <div />
 
         <a
-          v-for="tab in sectionTabs.filter(i => !isCharacterPage(i.link))"
+          v-for="tab in sectionTabs"
           :key="tab.label"
           :href="tab.link"
-          :class="{ '!after:bg-primary !text-foreground': withBase(`/${page.relativePath}`).includes(tab.link?.split('/').slice(0, -1).join('/') || '') }"
-          class="relative mx-4 h-full inline-flex items-center py-2 text-sm text-muted-foreground font-semibold after:absolute after:bottom-0 after:h-0.5 after:w-full hover:border-b-muted after:rounded-t-full after:bg-transparent hover:text-foreground after:content-['']"
-          transition-colors duration-200 ease-in-out
-        >
-          <Icon
-            v-if="tab.icon"
-            :icon="tab.icon"
-            class="mr-2 text-lg"
-          />
-          <span>{{ tab.label }}</span>
-        </a>
-      </div>
-
-      <div class="h-full flex items-center">
-        <a
-          v-for="tab in sectionTabs.filter(i => isCharacterPage(i.link))"
-          :key="tab.label"
-          :href="tab.link"
-          :class="{ '!after:bg-primary !text-foreground': withBase(page.relativePath).includes(tab.label?.toLowerCase() ?? '') }"
+          :class="{ '!after:bg-primary !text-foreground': isTabActive(tab) }"
           class="relative mx-4 h-full inline-flex items-center py-2 text-sm text-muted-foreground font-semibold after:absolute after:bottom-0 after:h-0.5 after:w-full hover:border-b-muted after:rounded-t-full after:bg-transparent hover:text-foreground after:content-['']"
           transition-colors duration-200 ease-in-out
         >
@@ -106,7 +87,7 @@ watch(path, () => {
 
         <DialogPortal>
           <DialogOverlay class="fixed inset-0 z-50 bg-black/80 data-[state=closed]:animate-fadeOut data-[state=open]:animate-fadeIn" />
-          <DialogContent class="data-[state=closed]:slide-out-to-left data-[state=open]:slide-in-from-left fixed inset-y-0 left-0 z-50 h-full w-3/4 gap-4 border-r border-muted bg-background pr-0 shadow-lg transition ease-in-out sm:max-w-sm data-[state=closed]:animate-exitToLeft data-[state=open]:animate-enterFromLeft">
+          <DialogContent class="data-[state=closed]:slide-out-to-left data-[state=open]:slide-in-from-left fixed inset-y-0 left-0 z-50 h-full max-w-xs w-5/8 gap-4 border-r border-muted bg-background pr-0 shadow-lg transition ease-in-out data-[state=closed]:animate-exitToLeft data-[state=open]:animate-enterFromLeft">
             <DialogTitle class="sr-only">
               Sidebar menu
             </DialogTitle>
@@ -140,20 +121,6 @@ watch(path, () => {
           </DialogContent>
         </DialogPortal>
       </DialogRoot>
-
-      <div class="h-full flex items-center">
-        <a
-          href="/characters/"
-          :class="{ '!border-b-primary !font-semibold !text-foreground': withBase(page.relativePath).includes('characters') }"
-          class="mx-4 h-full inline-flex items-center gap-2 border-b border-b-transparent py-2 text-sm text-muted-foreground font-medium hover:border-b-muted hover:text-foreground"
-        >
-          <Icon
-            icon="lucide:scan-face"
-            class="text-lg"
-          />
-          {{ t('docs.theme.pages.characters.title') }}
-        </a>
-      </div>
     </div>
   </div>
 </template>
diff --git a/docs/.vitepress/components/Home.vue b/docs/.vitepress/components/Home.vue
index 9b7596a80..a4e547dc2 100644
--- a/docs/.vitepress/components/Home.vue
+++ b/docs/.vitepress/components/Home.vue
@@ -192,8 +192,12 @@ const buttons = computed(() => theme.value.homepage?.buttons || [])
 
 <style>
 /* Infinite scrolling background pattern via mask */
+/* The SVG only acts as a mask; the pattern color is this background-color.
+   Keep it opaque: the elements already carry `opacity-10`, so an extra
+   translucent alpha would double-dilute it to ~0.8% and become invisible
+   on the light background. `--foreground` is dark in light mode. */
 .bg-icon-pattern {
-  background-color: white;
+  background-color: hsl(var(--foreground));
   -webkit-mask-image: var(--bg-mask-icon-pattern);
   mask-image: var(--bg-mask-icon-pattern);
   -webkit-mask-repeat: repeat;
@@ -205,11 +209,15 @@ const buttons = computed(() => theme.value.homepage?.buttons || [])
   animation: icon-mask-scroll 8s linear infinite;
 }
 
+.dark .bg-icon-pattern {
+  background-color: white;
+}
+
 @keyframes icon-mask-scroll {
   100% { -webkit-mask-position: 256px 256px; mask-position: 256px 256px; }
 }
 
 @media (prefers-reduced-motion: reduce) {
-  .bg-ghost-pattern { animation: none; }
+  .bg-icon-pattern { animation: none; }
 }
 </style>
diff --git a/docs/.vitepress/components/Navbar.vue b/docs/.vitepress/components/Navbar.vue
index 49973944e..bb3f3f946 100644
--- a/docs/.vitepress/components/Navbar.vue
+++ b/docs/.vitepress/components/Navbar.vue
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 <script setup lang="ts">
 import { Icon } from '@iconify/vue'
+import { useMediaQuery } from '@vueuse/core'
 import { dirname, sep } from 'pathe'
 import { DropdownMenuContent, DropdownMenuItem, DropdownMenuPortal, DropdownMenuRoot, DropdownMenuSub, DropdownMenuSubContent, DropdownMenuSubTrigger, DropdownMenuTrigger, Separator } from 'reka-ui'
 import { useData, useRoute } from 'vitepress'
@@ -22,6 +23,14 @@ watch(path, () => {
   isPopoverOpen.value = false
 })
 
+// Close the mobile menu when crossing to desktop: its teleported popup loses
+// its anchor once the trigger is hidden by xl:hidden and sticks to the corner.
+const isDesktop = useMediaQuery('(min-width: 1280px)')
+watch(isDesktop, (value) => {
+  if (value)
+    isPopoverOpen.value = false
+})
+
 function isNavLinkActive(link: string, path: string) {
   let normalizedLink = link.toLowerCase()
   normalizedLink = normalizedLink.split(sep).filter(Boolean).length > (site.value.base !== '' ? 3 : 2) ? `${dirname(normalizedLink)}/` : normalizedLink
@@ -33,7 +42,7 @@ function isNavLinkActive(link: string, path: string) {
 
 <template>
   <!-- eslint-disable vue/prefer-separate-static-class -->
-  <nav class="hidden items-center lg:flex">
+  <nav class="hidden items-center xl:flex">
     <template
       v-for="nav in theme.nav"
       :key="nav.text"
@@ -92,7 +101,7 @@ function isNavLinkActive(link: string, path: string) {
     </a>
   </nav>
 
-  <div class="lg:hidden">
+  <div class="xl:hidden">
     <DropdownMenuRoot v-model:open="isPopoverOpen">
       <DropdownMenuTrigger class="rounded-lg p-2">
         <Icon icon="lucide:ellipsis" class="text-lg" />
diff --git a/docs/.vitepress/components/ParallaxCover.vue b/docs/.vitepress/components/ParallaxCover.vue
index 20f788516..dc89b8a21 100644
--- a/docs/.vitepress/components/ParallaxCover.vue
+++ b/docs/.vitepress/components/ParallaxCover.vue
@@ -88,7 +88,7 @@ const maskImageURL = `url(${homeCover})`
     ]"
   >
     <img ref="surface" :src="homeCover" alt="Project AIRI Cover Image" class="w-full object-cover">
-    <div ref="silhouetteLayer2" class="silhouette absolute left-0 top-0 z--1 h-full w-full bg-[oklch(0.8105_0.1267_350.84)]" />
+    <div ref="silhouetteLayer1" class="silhouette absolute left-0 top-0 z--1 h-full w-full bg-[oklch(0.8105_0.1267_350.84)]" />
     <div ref="silhouetteLayer2" class="silhouette absolute left-0 top-0 z--2 h-full w-full bg-[oklch(0.5712_0.2396_278.59)]" />
   </div>
 </template>
diff --git a/docs/.vitepress/components/ParallaxCoverChristmas20251224.vue b/docs/.vitepress/components/ParallaxCoverChristmas20251224.vue
index ec0d5f26f..6c4b04b81 100644
--- a/docs/.vitepress/components/ParallaxCoverChristmas20251224.vue
+++ b/docs/.vitepress/components/ParallaxCoverChristmas20251224.vue
@@ -8,8 +8,6 @@ import { onMounted, shallowRef, useTemplateRef, watchEffect } from 'vue'
 import homeCover from '../assets/home-cover-2025-12-24.avif'
 
 const surfaceRef = useTemplateRef<HTMLImageElement>('surface')
-const silhouetteLayer1Ref = useTemplateRef<HTMLDivElement>('silhouetteLayer1')
-const silhouetteLayer2Ref = useTemplateRef<HTMLDivElement>('silhouetteLayer2')
 
 const shouldReduceMotion = useLocalStorage('docs:settings/reduce-motion', false)
 
@@ -17,8 +15,6 @@ const DURATION = 1200
 const EASE = 'outSine'
 
 const surfaceAnimatable = shallowRef<AnimatableObject>()
-const silhouetteLayer1Animatable = shallowRef<AnimatableObject>()
-const silhouetteLayer2Animatable = shallowRef<AnimatableObject>()
 
 function animateCover(xOffsetRatio: number, yOffsetRatio: number) {
   const referenceWidth = window.innerWidth
@@ -26,14 +22,6 @@ function animateCover(xOffsetRatio: number, yOffsetRatio: number) {
   surfaceAnimatable.value?.x?.(-xOffsetRatio * 0.02 * referenceWidth)
   surfaceAnimatable.value?.y?.(-yOffsetRatio * 0.02 * referenceWidth)
   surfaceAnimatable.value?.z?.(0)
-
-  silhouetteLayer1Animatable.value?.x?.(0.01 * referenceWidth - yOffsetRatio * 0.015 * referenceWidth)
-  silhouetteLayer1Animatable.value?.y?.(0.02 * referenceWidth + xOffsetRatio * 0.015 * referenceWidth)
-  silhouetteLayer1Animatable.value?.z?.(0)
-
-  silhouetteLayer2Animatable.value?.x?.(0.01 * referenceWidth + yOffsetRatio * 0.01 * referenceWidth)
-  silhouetteLayer2Animatable.value?.y?.(-0.01 * referenceWidth - yOffsetRatio * 0.01 * referenceWidth)
-  silhouetteLayer2Animatable.value?.z?.(0)
 }
 
 function onMouseMove(event: MouseEvent) {
@@ -55,8 +43,6 @@ onMounted(() => {
   }
 
   surfaceAnimatable.value = createAnimatable(surfaceRef.value!, animatableConfig)
-  silhouetteLayer1Animatable.value = createAnimatable(silhouetteLayer1Ref.value!, animatableConfig)
-  silhouetteLayer2Animatable.value = createAnimatable(silhouetteLayer2Ref.value!, animatableConfig)
 })
 
 watchEffect((onCleanup) => {
diff --git a/docs/.vitepress/components/ParallaxCoverHalloween20251029.vue b/docs/.vitepress/components/ParallaxCoverHalloween20251029.vue
index 9a2298a8f..2b12b15c4 100644
--- a/docs/.vitepress/components/ParallaxCoverHalloween20251029.vue
+++ b/docs/.vitepress/components/ParallaxCoverHalloween20251029.vue
@@ -88,7 +88,7 @@ const maskImageURL = `url(${homeCover})`
     ]"
   >
     <img ref="surface" :src="homeCover" alt="Project AIRI Cover Image" class="w-full object-cover">
-    <div ref="silhouetteLayer2" class="silhouette absolute left-0 top-0 z--1 h-full w-full bg-[oklch(0.89_0.08_67.49)]" />
+    <div ref="silhouetteLayer1" class="silhouette absolute left-0 top-0 z--1 h-full w-full bg-[oklch(0.89_0.08_67.49)]" />
     <div ref="silhouetteLayer2" class="silhouette absolute left-0 top-0 z--2 h-full w-full bg-[oklch(0.69_0.16_295.04)]" />
   </div>
 </template>
diff --git a/docs/.vitepress/components/SearchCommandBox.vue b/docs/.vitepress/components/SearchCommandBox.vue
index 44a6b0892..ca4c06591 100644
--- a/docs/.vitepress/components/SearchCommandBox.vue
+++ b/docs/.vitepress/components/SearchCommandBox.vue
@@ -49,10 +49,15 @@ const mark = computedAsync(async () => {
   return markRaw(new Mark(resultsEl.value))
 }, null)
 
-const searchIndex = computedAsync(async () =>
-  markRaw(
+const searchIndex = computedAsync(async () => {
+  // Index loads asynchronously in onMounted; return undefined until ready.
+  const data = searchIndexData.value
+  if (!data)
+    return undefined
+
+  return markRaw(
     MiniSearch.loadJSON<Result>(
-      (await searchIndexData.value[localeIndex.value]?.())?.default,
+      (await data[localeIndex.value]?.())?.default,
       {
         fields: ['title', 'titles', 'text'],
         storeFields: ['title', 'titles'],
@@ -63,8 +68,8 @@ const searchIndex = computedAsync(async () =>
         },
       },
     ),
-  ),
-)
+  )
+})
 
 const cache = new LRUCache(16) // 16 files
 
diff --git a/docs/.vitepress/components/SearchTrigger.vue b/docs/.vitepress/components/SearchTrigger.vue
index 96dd871cb..de79268ea 100644
--- a/docs/.vitepress/components/SearchTrigger.vue
+++ b/docs/.vitepress/components/SearchTrigger.vue
@@ -1,14 +1,16 @@
 <script setup lang="ts">
 import { Icon } from '@iconify/vue'
 import { useMagicKeys, whenever } from '@vueuse/core'
-import { AnimatePresence, Motion } from 'motion-v'
 import { DialogContent, DialogDescription, DialogOverlay, DialogPortal, DialogRoot, DialogTitle, DialogTrigger } from 'reka-ui'
-import { defineAsyncComponent, ref } from 'vue'
+import { defineAsyncComponent, ref, watch } from 'vue'
 import { useI18n } from 'vue-i18n'
 
 const SearchCommandBox = defineAsyncComponent(() => import('./SearchCommandBox.vue'))
 
 const open = ref(false)
+const triggerRef = ref<HTMLElement>()
+const overlayRef = ref<HTMLElement>()
+const contentRef = ref<HTMLElement>()
 const { meta_k } = useMagicKeys()
 const { t } = useI18n()
 
@@ -22,11 +24,160 @@ function handleClose() {
     open.value = false
   })
 }
+
+let contentAnim: Animation | undefined
+let overlayAnim: Animation | undefined
+
+function clamp(value: number, min: number, max: number) {
+  return Math.min(Math.max(value, min), max)
+}
+
+/** Unwrap a reka-ui component ref to its DOM element ($el). */
+function resolveElement(refValue: unknown): HTMLElement | undefined {
+  const plain = (refValue as { $el?: unknown } | null | undefined)?.$el ?? refValue
+  return plain instanceof HTMLElement ? plain : undefined
+}
+
+/** Wait for the async content to settle; a near-zero height would blow up the FLIP scale. */
+async function waitForContent(
+  getContent: () => HTMLElement | undefined,
+  timeoutMs = 1500,
+): Promise<HTMLElement | undefined> {
+  const start = performance.now()
+  let el: HTMLElement | undefined
+  let prevHeight = -1
+  while (performance.now() - start < timeoutMs) {
+    // Bail out early if the dialog was closed while we were waiting.
+    if (!open.value)
+      return undefined
+    await new Promise(resolve => requestAnimationFrame(resolve))
+    el = getContent()
+    if (!el)
+      continue
+    const height = el.getBoundingClientRect().height
+    if (height > 0 && height === prevHeight)
+      return el
+    prevHeight = height
+  }
+  return el
+}
+
+/**
+ * FLIP morph: animate the dialog from the search bar's rect (WAAPI, 0.2s);
+ * closing replays it in reverse via the `data-state=closed` CSS animation.
+ * Stores --morph-* for the close animation and cancels the WAAPI object
+ * afterwards, otherwise it keeps locking transform and suppresses it.
+ *
+ * A run awaiting waitForContent must not apply animations once the dialog
+ * has been closed (or reopened) in the meantime — guarded by `watchRun`.
+ */
+let watchRun = 0
+watch(open, async (isOpen) => {
+  const run = ++watchRun
+
+  if (!isOpen) {
+    // Snapshot the current computed state BEFORE cancelling the opening
+    // animation: cancelling reverts to the class defaults (opacity-0), which
+    // would make the closing animation jump to its `from` keyframe (full
+    // opacity) first. Writing the snapshot into CSS variables lets the
+    // closing keyframes start from the mid-flight state instead.
+    const content = resolveElement(contentRef.value)
+    if (content) {
+      const current = getComputedStyle(content)
+      content.style.setProperty('--morph-from-transform', current.transform)
+      content.style.setProperty('--morph-from-opacity', current.opacity)
+    }
+    const overlay = resolveElement(overlayRef.value)
+    if (overlay)
+      overlay.style.setProperty('--morph-from-opacity', getComputedStyle(overlay).opacity)
+  }
+
+  contentAnim?.cancel()
+  overlayAnim?.cancel()
+  contentAnim = undefined
+  overlayAnim = undefined
+
+  if (!isOpen) {
+    // Clear the open animation's inline styles so the CSS close animation can run.
+    const content = resolveElement(contentRef.value)
+    if (content) {
+      content.style.transform = ''
+      content.style.opacity = ''
+    }
+    return
+  }
+
+  const content = await waitForContent(
+    () => resolveElement(contentRef.value) ?? document.querySelector<HTMLElement>('.search-dialog') ?? undefined,
+  )
+  // Stale guard: the dialog may have been closed (or reopened) while we were
+  // waiting — abort, so the opening animation never applies to a closing dialog.
+  if (run !== watchRun || !open.value)
+    return
+
+  const trigger = resolveElement(triggerRef.value)
+  if (!trigger || !content)
+    return
+
+  const triggerRect = trigger.getBoundingClientRect()
+  const contentRect = content.getBoundingClientRect()
+
+  const scaleX = clamp(triggerRect.width / contentRect.width, 0.1, 1)
+  const scaleY = clamp(triggerRect.height / contentRect.height, 0.1, 1)
+  const translateX = (triggerRect.left + triggerRect.width / 2) - (contentRect.left + contentRect.width / 2)
+  const translateY = (triggerRect.top + triggerRect.height / 2) - (contentRect.top + contentRect.height / 2)
+
+  const { style } = content
+  style.setProperty('--morph-x', `${translateX}px`)
+  style.setProperty('--morph-y', `${translateY}px`)
+  style.setProperty('--morph-sx', `${scaleX}`)
+  style.setProperty('--morph-sy', `${scaleY}`)
+
+  // Start at the search bar position (content is opacity-0, so no flash)
+  style.transform = `translate(${translateX}px, ${translateY}px) scale(${scaleX}, ${scaleY})`
+  content.getBoundingClientRect() // force reflow so the initial state applies first
+
+  const animation = content.animate(
+    [
+      { transform: `translate(${translateX}px, ${translateY}px) scale(${scaleX}, ${scaleY})`, opacity: 0 },
+      { transform: 'none', opacity: 1 },
+    ],
+    // Nonlinear scale (fast-in, slow-out, no overshoot).
+    { duration: 200, easing: 'cubic-bezier(0.16, 1, 0.3, 1)', fill: 'forwards' },
+  )
+  contentAnim = animation
+  animation.finished
+    .then(() => {
+      animation.cancel()
+      style.transform = ''
+      style.opacity = '1' // cancel reverts to the class's opacity-0; keep it visible explicitly
+      if (contentAnim === animation)
+        contentAnim = undefined
+    })
+    .catch(() => {})
+
+  const overlay = resolveElement(overlayRef.value)
+  if (overlay) {
+    const overlayAnimation = overlay.animate(
+      [{ opacity: 0 }, { opacity: 1 }],
+      { duration: 200, easing: 'cubic-bezier(0.16, 1, 0.3, 1)', fill: 'forwards' },
+    )
+    overlayAnim = overlayAnimation
+    overlayAnimation.finished
+      .then(() => {
+        overlayAnimation.cancel()
+        overlay.style.opacity = '1'
+        if (overlayAnim === overlayAnimation)
+          overlayAnim = undefined
+      })
+      .catch(() => {})
+  }
+})
 </script>
 
 <template>
   <DialogRoot v-model:open="open">
-    <DialogTrigger class="text-md flex items-center border-muted rounded-lg px-3 py-[7px] text-muted-foreground transition-colors duration-200 ease-in-out space-x-2 md:border hover:bg-muted md:bg-card md:text-sm">
+    <DialogTrigger ref="triggerRef" class="text-md flex items-center border-muted rounded-lg px-3 py-[7px] text-muted-foreground transition-colors duration-200 ease-in-out space-x-2 md:border hover:bg-muted md:bg-card md:text-sm">
       <Icon icon="lucide:search" />
       <span class="hidden w-24 text-left lg:w-40 md:inline-flex">{{ t('docs.theme.search.title') }}</span>
       <span class="hidden text-xs prose md:inline-flex">
@@ -35,32 +186,22 @@ function handleClose() {
     </DialogTrigger>
 
     <DialogPortal>
-      <AnimatePresence multiple>
-        <DialogOverlay as-child>
-          <Motion
-            class="fixed inset-0 z-30 bg-background/50 backdrop-blur-md"
-            :initial="{ opacity: 0, scale: 0 }"
-            :animate="{ opacity: 1, scale: 1 }"
-            :exit="{ opacity: 0 }"
-          />
-        </DialogOverlay>
-        <DialogContent as-child>
-          <Motion
-            class="fixed left-[50%] top-[10%] z-[100] max-h-[85vh] max-w-[750px] w-[90vw] translate-x-[-50%] overflow-hidden border border-muted rounded-xl bg-card shadow-xl will-change-transform focus:outline-none"
-            :initial="{ opacity: 0, top: '0%', transition: { duration: 0.2, ease: 'easeInOut' } }"
-            :animate="{ opacity: 1, top: '10%', transition: { duration: 0.2, ease: 'easeInOut' } }"
-            :exit="{ opacity: 0, top: '0%', transition: { duration: 0.2, ease: 'easeInOut' } }"
-          >
-            <DialogTitle class="sr-only">
-              Search documentation
-            </DialogTitle>
-            <DialogDescription class="sr-only">
-              Show related results based on search term
-            </DialogDescription>
-            <SearchCommandBox @close="handleClose" />
-          </Motion>
-        </DialogContent>
-      </AnimatePresence>
+      <DialogOverlay
+        ref="overlayRef"
+        class="search-overlay fixed inset-0 z-30 bg-background/50 opacity-0 backdrop-blur-md"
+      />
+      <DialogContent
+        ref="contentRef"
+        class="search-dialog fixed inset-x-0 top-[10%] z-[100] mx-auto max-h-[85vh] max-w-[750px] w-[90vw] origin-center overflow-hidden border border-muted rounded-xl bg-card opacity-0 shadow-xl focus:outline-none"
+      >
+        <DialogTitle class="sr-only">
+          Search documentation
+        </DialogTitle>
+        <DialogDescription class="sr-only">
+          Show related results based on search term
+        </DialogDescription>
+        <SearchCommandBox @close="handleClose" />
+      </DialogContent>
     </DialogPortal>
   </DialogRoot>
 </template>
diff --git a/docs/.vitepress/components/ThemeToggle.vue b/docs/.vitepress/components/ThemeToggle.vue
index 9bdf7c0f6..54cfa19af 100644
--- a/docs/.vitepress/components/ThemeToggle.vue
+++ b/docs/.vitepress/components/ThemeToggle.vue
@@ -4,6 +4,12 @@ import { SwitchRoot, SwitchThumb } from 'reka-ui'
 import { useData } from 'vitepress'
 import { ref, watchPostEffect } from 'vue'
 
+defineOptions({
+  // DropdownMenuItem as-child passes item attrs here; ClientOnly (fragment)
+  // can't inherit them, so bind $attrs onto SwitchRoot manually.
+  inheritAttrs: false,
+})
+
 const { isDark } = useData()
 
 const switchTitle = ref('')
@@ -13,15 +19,35 @@ watchPostEffect(() => {
     ? 'Switch to light theme'
     : 'Switch to dark theme'
 })
+
+/**
+ * Wraps the theme switch in a View Transition so the browser cross-fades the
+ * whole page snapshots, keeping every element in sync. Falls back to an
+ * instant switch where `startViewTransition` is unsupported (e.g. Firefox).
+ */
+function onToggle(value: boolean) {
+  if (value === isDark.value)
+    return
+  if (typeof document !== 'undefined' && 'startViewTransition' in document) {
+    document.startViewTransition(() => {
+      isDark.value = value
+    })
+  }
+  else {
+    isDark.value = value
+  }
+}
 </script>
 
 <template>
   <ClientOnly>
     <SwitchRoot
       id="theme-toggle"
-      v-model="isDark"
+      v-bind="$attrs"
+      :model-value="isDark"
       class="relative h-6 w-11 flex flex-shrink-0 border border-muted-foreground/10 rounded-full bg-muted"
       :aria-label="switchTitle"
+      @update:model-value="onToggle"
     >
       <SwitchThumb
         class="my-auto h-5 w-5 flex translate-x-0.5 items-center justify-center border border-muted rounded-full bg-background text-xs text-muted-foreground will-change-transform data-[state=checked]:translate-x-5 !transition-transform"
diff --git a/docs/.vitepress/composables/theme-color.ts b/docs/.vitepress/composables/theme-color.ts
index 322d689be..0cbdb085a 100644
--- a/docs/.vitepress/composables/theme-color.ts
+++ b/docs/.vitepress/composables/theme-color.ts
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 import Color from 'colorjs.io'
 
 import { withRetry } from '@moeru/std'
-import { useDark } from '@vueuse/core'
+import { useData } from 'vitepress'
 
 export function themeColorFromPropertyOf(colorFromClass: string, property: string): () => Promise<string> {
   return async () => {
@@ -18,15 +18,21 @@ export function themeColorFromPropertyOf(colorFromClass: string, property: strin
   }
 }
 
+/**
+ * Resolves a theme color from a static value or per-scheme values.
+ *
+ * `useData()` must run here (factory body, called from `setup()`): inside the
+ * returned async closure the inject context is gone and it would throw.
+ * Reading VitePress' `isDark` also avoids stray `useDark()` instances that
+ * force the theme back to the system preference.
+ */
 export function themeColorFromValue(value: string | { light: string, dark: string }): () => Promise<string> {
+  const { isDark } = useData()
   return async () => {
     if (typeof value === 'string') {
       return value
     }
-    else {
-      const dark = useDark()
-      return dark.value ? value.dark : value.light
-    }
+    return isDark.value ? value.dark : value.light
   }
 }
 
diff --git a/docs/.vitepress/config.ts b/docs/.vitepress/config.ts
index de8166095..a3e42ce53 100644
--- a/docs/.vitepress/config.ts
+++ b/docs/.vitepress/config.ts
@@ -137,6 +137,7 @@ export default defineConfig<ThemeConfig>({
           {
             text: 'Manual',
             icon: 'lucide:book-open',
+            link: withBase('/en/docs/manual/'),
             items: [
               {
                 text: 'Quick Start',
@@ -194,11 +195,6 @@ export default defineConfig<ThemeConfig>({
               { text: 'Before Story v0.0.1', link: withBase('/en/docs/chronicles/version-v0.0.1/') },
             ],
           },
-          {
-            text: 'Characters',
-            icon: 'lucide:scan-face',
-            link: withBase('/en/characters/'),
-          },
         ] as (DefaultTheme.SidebarItem & { icon?: string })[],
 
         homepage: {
@@ -282,12 +278,12 @@ export default defineConfig<ThemeConfig>({
                   { text: '先前的故事 v0.0.1', link: withBase('/zh-Hans/docs/chronicles/version-v0.0.1/') },
                 ],
               },
-              { text: '角色', link: withBase('/zh-Hans/characters/') },
             ],
           },
           {
             text: '用户手册',
             icon: 'lucide:book-open',
+            link: withBase('/zh-Hans/docs/manual/'),
             items: [
               {
                 text: '快速开始',
@@ -521,6 +517,7 @@ export default defineConfig<ThemeConfig>({
           {
             text: 'マニュアル',
             icon: 'lucide:book-open',
+            link: withBase('/ja/docs/manual/'),
             items: [
               {
                 text: 'クイックスタート',
@@ -577,11 +574,6 @@ export default defineConfig<ThemeConfig>({
               { text: '前日譚 v0.0.1', link: withBase('/ja/docs/chronicles/version-v0.0.1/') },
             ],
           },
-          {
-            text: 'キャラクター',
-            icon: 'lucide:scan-face',
-            link: withBase('/ja/characters/'),
-          },
         ] as (DefaultTheme.SidebarItem & { icon?: string })[],
 
         homepage: {
@@ -662,6 +654,7 @@ export default defineConfig<ThemeConfig>({
           {
             text: '사용 설명서',
             icon: 'lucide:book-open',
+            link: withBase('/ko/docs/manual/'),
             items: [
               {
                 text: '빠른 시작',
diff --git a/docs/.vitepress/custom/Docs.vue b/docs/.vitepress/custom/Docs.vue
index 3f5287861..dac234e02 100644
--- a/docs/.vitepress/custom/Docs.vue
+++ b/docs/.vitepress/custom/Docs.vue
@@ -4,10 +4,11 @@ import type { DefaultTheme } from 'vitepress/theme'
 import type { Author } from '../functions/authors.data'
 
 import { tryCatch } from '@moeru/std'
+import { usePreferredReducedMotion } from '@vueuse/core'
 import { intlFormat } from 'date-fns'
 import { AvatarFallback, AvatarImage, AvatarRoot } from 'reka-ui'
 import { Content, useData, useRoute } from 'vitepress'
-import { computed, toRefs } from 'vue'
+import { computed, onMounted, ref, toRefs, watch } from 'vue'
 import { useI18n } from 'vue-i18n'
 
 // import DocCarbonAds from '../components/DocCarbonAds.vue'
@@ -107,6 +108,39 @@ const authors = computed(() => {
   const data = (authorsData as unknown as { data: Array<{ url: string, authors: Author[] }> }).data
   return data.find(item => item.url === path.value)?.authors || []
 })
+
+// Title snapshot keyed by `path`: `frontmatter` updates before the article
+// key changes, which would swap the leaving page's title to the new one.
+const pageTitle = ref(frontmatter.value.title || '')
+
+watch(path, () => {
+  pageTitle.value = frontmatter.value.title || ''
+})
+
+// Lock the first paint: hydration replays the transition, so start with an
+// empty `name` (transition classes match no `.fade-*` CSS → no animation)
+// and switch to "fade" only after the article height stabilizes.
+const transitionName = ref('')
+
+// Also honor the user's reduced-motion preference (system setting); the CSS
+// media query in theme-animations.css backs this up for live preference changes.
+const reducedMotion = usePreferredReducedMotion()
+
+onMounted(async () => {
+  const article = document.querySelector<HTMLElement>('.docs-article')
+  if (article) {
+    let prevHeight = -1
+    for (let i = 0; i < 30; i++) {
+      await new Promise(resolve => requestAnimationFrame(resolve))
+      const height = article.getBoundingClientRect().height
+      if (height > 0 && height === prevHeight)
+        break
+      prevHeight = height
+    }
+  }
+  if (!reducedMotion.value)
+    transitionName.value = 'fade'
+})
 </script>
 
 <template>
@@ -145,60 +179,69 @@ const authors = computed(() => {
       </aside>
 
       <div class="flex-1 overflow-x-hidden px-6 py-6 md:px-24 md:py-12">
-        <div class="mb-2 text-sm text-primary font-bold">
+        <!-- Section name for mobile (desktop has the sidebar) -->
+        <div class="mb-2 text-sm text-primary font-bold md:hidden">
           {{ activeSection?.text }}
         </div>
-        <article class="docs-article max-w-none w-full font-sans prose prose-slate dark:prose-invert">
-          <h1>
-            {{ frontmatter.title || '' }}
-          </h1>
+        <Transition
+          :name="transitionName"
+          mode="out-in"
+        >
+          <article
+            :key="path"
+            class="docs-article max-w-none w-full font-sans prose prose-slate dark:prose-invert"
+          >
+            <h1>
+              {{ pageTitle }}
+            </h1>
 
-          <div v-if="publishedAt || authors && authors.length" class="mb-10 mt-5 flex flex-col gap-3 sm:gap-5">
-            <div v-if="publishedAt" class="text-neutral-400 dark:text-neutral-500">
-              <span>
-                {{ t('docs.theme.doc.published-at', { date: publishedAt }) }}
-              </span>
-            </div>
+            <div v-if="publishedAt || authors && authors.length" class="mb-10 mt-5 flex flex-col gap-3 sm:gap-5">
+              <div v-if="publishedAt" class="text-neutral-400 dark:text-neutral-500">
+                <span>
+                  {{ t('docs.theme.doc.published-at', { date: publishedAt }) }}
+                </span>
+              </div>
 
-            <div class="flex flex-row gap-2 sm:gap-4">
-              <!-- Authors -->
-              <div v-for="(author, index) of authors" :key="index" class="flex flex-row items-center gap-2.5">
-                <AvatarRoot class="size-10 inline-flex select-none items-center justify-center overflow-hidden rounded-full bg-neutral-100 align-middle dark:bg-neutral-800">
-                  <AvatarImage
-                    class="h-full w-full rounded-[inherit] object-cover"
-                    :src="author.avatar || author.avatarFallback"
-                    :alt="`${author.displayName}'s avatar`"
-                  />
-                  <AvatarFallback
-                    class="h-full w-full flex items-center justify-center bg-white text-sm text-primary font-medium leading-1 dark:bg-neutral-800 dark:text-neutral-300"
-                    :delay-ms="600"
-                    as-child
-                  >
-                    {{
-                      [
-                        author.displayName.charAt(0).toUpperCase(),
-                        author.displayName.charAt(1).toUpperCase(),
-                      ].join('')
-                    }}
-                  </AvatarFallback>
-                </AvatarRoot>
+              <div class="flex flex-row gap-2 sm:gap-4">
+                <!-- Authors -->
+                <div v-for="(author, index) of authors" :key="index" class="flex flex-row items-center gap-2.5">
+                  <AvatarRoot class="size-10 inline-flex select-none items-center justify-center overflow-hidden rounded-full bg-neutral-100 align-middle dark:bg-neutral-800">
+                    <AvatarImage
+                      class="h-full w-full rounded-[inherit] object-cover"
+                      :src="author.avatar || author.avatarFallback"
+                      :alt="`${author.displayName}'s avatar`"
+                    />
+                    <AvatarFallback
+                      class="h-full w-full flex items-center justify-center bg-white text-sm text-primary font-medium leading-1 dark:bg-neutral-800 dark:text-neutral-300"
+                      :delay-ms="600"
+                      as-child
+                    >
+                      {{
+                        [
+                          author.displayName.charAt(0).toUpperCase(),
+                          author.displayName.charAt(1).toUpperCase(),
+                        ].join('')
+                      }}
+                    </AvatarFallback>
+                  </AvatarRoot>
 
-                <div class="flex flex-col">
-                  <div>
-                    <span>{{ author.displayName }}</span>
-                  </div>
-                  <div v-if="author.githubUsername">
-                    <a :href="`https://github.com/${author.githubUsername}`" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="text-sm text-primary hover:underline">
-                      <span>{{ author.githubUsername }}</span>
-                    </a>
+                  <div class="flex flex-col">
+                    <div>
+                      <span>{{ author.displayName }}</span>
+                    </div>
+                    <div v-if="author.githubUsername">
+                      <a :href="`https://github.com/${author.githubUsername}`" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="text-sm text-primary hover:underline">
+                        <span>{{ author.githubUsername }}</span>
+                      </a>
+                    </div>
                   </div>
                 </div>
               </div>
             </div>
-          </div>
 
-          <Content />
-        </article>
+            <Content />
+          </article>
+        </Transition>
 
         <DocFooter v-if="!isCharactersPage" />
       </div>
diff --git a/docs/.vitepress/theme/theme-animations.css b/docs/.vitepress/theme/theme-animations.css
index acc2bcf18..9dee5210e 100644
--- a/docs/.vitepress/theme/theme-animations.css
+++ b/docs/.vitepress/theme/theme-animations.css
@@ -1,9 +1,53 @@
 .fade-enter-active,
 .fade-leave-active {
-  transition: opacity 0.15s ease-in-out;
+  transition: opacity 0.2s ease-in-out, transform 0.2s ease-in-out;
+}
+
+.fade-enter-from {
+  opacity: 0;
+  transform: translateY(0.5rem);
 }
 
-.fade-enter-from,
 .fade-leave-to {
   opacity: 0;
+  transform: translateY(-0.5rem);
+}
+
+/* Search dialog close: reverse of the open FLIP morph (--morph-* set in
+   SearchTrigger.vue); reka-ui's Presence waits for these animations. */
+.search-overlay[data-state='closed'] {
+  animation: search-fade-out 0.2s cubic-bezier(0.16, 1, 0.3, 1) forwards;
+}
+
+.search-dialog[data-state='closed'] {
+  animation: search-morph-out 0.2s cubic-bezier(0.16, 1, 0.3, 1) forwards;
+}
+
+@keyframes search-fade-out {
+  from { opacity: var(--morph-from-opacity, 1); }
+  to { opacity: 0; }
+}
+
+/* The `from` frame starts from the snapshot SearchTrigger.vue wrote before
+   cancelling the opening animation, so a mid-flight close does not flash the
+   full visible state first. */
+@keyframes search-morph-out {
+  from {
+    transform: var(--morph-from-transform, none);
+    opacity: var(--morph-from-opacity, 1);
+  }
+  to {
+    transform: translate(var(--morph-x, 0px), var(--morph-y, 0px))
+      scale(var(--morph-sx, 1), var(--morph-sy, 1));
+    opacity: 0;
+  }
+}
+
+/* Honor the user's reduced-motion preference for the route transition
+   (Docs.vue also keeps its transition name empty in that case). */
+@media (prefers-reduced-motion: reduce) {
+  .fade-enter-active,
+  .fade-leave-active {
+    transition: none;
+  }
 }
diff --git a/docs/content/en/docs/contributing/design-guidelines/resources.md b/docs/content/en/docs/contributing/design-guidelines/resources.md
index 7aa95065f..89f4a791f 100644
--- a/docs/content/en/docs/contributing/design-guidelines/resources.md
+++ b/docs/content/en/docs/contributing/design-guidelines/resources.md
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@ description: Resources for referencing and taking inspiration from
 
 One of the greatest CSS stage transition author I know is **[yui540](https://yui540.com/)**, he/she designed so many other stunning looking ACG websites, and the most famous one was [臆病な魔女](https://cowardly-witch.netlify.app/) (source code can be found under [yui540](https://github.com/yui540?tab=repositories)).
 
-To achieve the similar transition effect like the above, you may reference to this repository [yui540/css-animations: 俺流CSSアニメーション](https://github.com/yui540/css-animations), it has a [live demo](https://yui540.github.io/css-animations/2025-02-25/transitions/) you can play around too.
+To achieve the similar transition effect like the above, you may reference to this repository [yui540/css-animations: 俺流CSSアニメーション](https://github.com/yui540/css-animations).
 
 ### [Nihe Works](https://nihe.work/)
 
diff --git a/docs/content/ja/docs/contributing/design-guidelines/resources.md b/docs/content/ja/docs/contributing/design-guidelines/resources.md
index 74d852a25..fd5295432 100644
--- a/docs/content/ja/docs/contributing/design-guidelines/resources.md
+++ b/docs/content/ja/docs/contributing/design-guidelines/resources.md
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@ description: 参照やインスピレーションを得るためのリソース
 
 私が知る限り、最も素晴らしい CSS ステージ遷移の作者の一人は **[yui540](https://yui540.com/)** です。彼/彼女は他にも多くの素晴らしい見た目の ACG ウェブサイトをデザインしており、最も有名なものは [臆病な魔女](https://cowardly-witch.netlify.app/) でした (ソースコードは [yui540](https://github.com/yui540?tab=repositories) で見つけることができます)。
 
-上記のような同様の遷移効果を実現するには、このリポジトリ [yui540/css-animations: 俺流CSSアニメーション](https://github.com/yui540/css-animations) を参照してください。遊べる [ライブデモ](https://yui540.github.io/css-animations/2025-02-25/transitions/) もあります。
+上記のような同様の遷移効果を実現するには、このリポジトリ [yui540/css-animations: 俺流CSSアニメーション](https://github.com/yui540/css-animations) を参照してください。
 
 ### [Nihe Works](https://nihe.work/)
 
diff --git a/docs/content/ko/docs/contributing/design-guidelines/resources.md b/docs/content/ko/docs/contributing/design-guidelines/resources.md
index d52e9bf4d..5c6b1f958 100644
--- a/docs/content/ko/docs/contributing/design-guidelines/resources.md
+++ b/docs/content/ko/docs/contributing/design-guidelines/resources.md
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@ description: 참고하고 영감을 얻을 수 있는 자료들
 
 제가 아는 최고의 CSS 화면 전환 제작자 중 한 명은 **[yui540](https://yui540.com/)** 입니다. 눈부신 ACG 웹사이트를 정말 많이 디자인했고, 그중 가장 유명한 작품은 [臆病な魔女](https://cowardly-witch.netlify.app/) 입니다 (소스 코드는 [yui540](https://github.com/yui540?tab=repositories) 에서 찾아볼 수 있습니다).
 
-위와 비슷한 전환 효과를 구현하고 싶다면 [yui540/css-animations: 俺流CSSアニメーション](https://github.com/yui540/css-animations) 저장소를 참고하세요. 직접 만져볼 수 있는 [라이브 데모](https://yui540.github.io/css-animations/2025-02-25/transitions/) 도 있습니다.
+위와 비슷한 전환 효과를 구현하고 싶다면 [yui540/css-animations: 俺流CSSアニメーション](https://github.com/yui540/css-animations) 저장소를 참고하세요.
 
 ### [Nihe Works](https://nihe.work/)
 
diff --git a/docs/content/public/_redirects b/docs/content/public/_redirects
index be165f567..60ddcbbc9 100644
--- a/docs/content/public/_redirects
+++ b/docs/content/public/_redirects
@@ -3,4 +3,6 @@
 /*  /zh-Hans/:splat  301  Language=zh-CN
 /*  /ko/:splat       301  Language=ko
 /*  /ko/:splat       301  Language=ko-KR
+/*  /ja/:splat       301  Language=ja
+/*  /ja/:splat       301  Language=ja-JP
 /*  /en/:splat       301
diff --git a/docs/content/zh-Hans/docs/contributing/design-guidelines/resources.md b/docs/content/zh-Hans/docs/contributing/design-guidelines/resources.md
index 01b45e4ca..3ffa61ca9 100644
--- a/docs/content/zh-Hans/docs/contributing/design-guidelines/resources.md
+++ b/docs/content/zh-Hans/docs/contributing/design-guidelines/resources.md
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@ description: 用于参考和获取灵感的资源
 
 我所知道的最伟大的 CSS 场景过渡效果作者之一是 **[yui540](https://yui540.com/)**，他/她设计了许多其他外观惊艳的 ACG 网站，其中最著名的是 [臆病な魔女](https://cowardly-witch.netlify.app/)（源代码可以在 [yui540](https://github.com/yui540?tab=repositories) 下找到）。
 
-要实现类似上述的过渡效果，您可以参考这个仓库 [yui540/css-animations: 俺流CSSアニメーション](https://github.com/yui540/css-animations)，它还有一个 [在线演示](https://yui540.github.io/css-animations/2025-02-25/transitions/) 供您试玩。
+要实现类似上述的过渡效果，您可以参考这个仓库 [yui540/css-animations: 俺流CSSアニメーション](https://github.com/yui540/css-animations)
 
 ### [Nihe Works](https://nihe.work/)