diff --git a/.changeset/adaptive-bone-colors.md b/.changeset/adaptive-bone-colors.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..a6223ef
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.changeset/adaptive-bone-colors.md
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+---
+"@camp.dev/bones": minor
+---
+
+Bone colors derive from the inherited text color instead of the OS color scheme. `--bone-base` defaults to the text color at 12% opacity and `--bone-highlight` at 6%, and the `prefers-color-scheme` media query is gone. Bones are now visible on any background the surrounding text is readable on. Before this, a dark-mode OS over a page that kept a light canvas painted white bones on white (BON-13). Overriding the custom properties works unchanged. Internally, bones hide their content by zeroing the alpha of `color` so the channels survive into the derivation, and the measured overlay's no-stylesheet fallbacks derive the same way. The stylesheets now use relative color syntax, which is Baseline 2024 (Chrome 119, Safari 18, Firefox 128).
diff --git a/apps/docs/content/docs/styling.mdx b/apps/docs/content/docs/styling.mdx
index b9ff02f..5728df5 100644
--- a/apps/docs/content/docs/styling.mdx
+++ b/apps/docs/content/docs/styling.mdx
@@ -7,12 +7,14 @@ All skeleton visuals are controlled by CSS custom properties. Override them glob
 
 ## CSS custom properties
 
-| Property           | Default (light)       | Default (dark)              | Description                    |
-| ------------------ | --------------------- | --------------------------- | ------------------------------ |
-| `--bone-base`      | `rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.12)` | `rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.12)` | Skeleton background color      |
-| `--bone-highlight` | `rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.06)` | `rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.06)` | Highlight color (for shimmer)  |
-| `--bone-radius`    | `4px`                 | `4px`                       | Border radius of skeleton bars |
-| `--bone-duration`  | `1.5s`                | `1.5s`                      | Animation duration             |
+| Property           | Default                       | Description                    |
+| ------------------ | ----------------------------- | ------------------------------ |
+| `--bone-base`      | the text color at 12% opacity | Skeleton background color      |
+| `--bone-highlight` | the text color at 6% opacity  | Highlight color (for shimmer)  |
+| `--bone-radius`    | `4px`                         | Border radius of skeleton bars |
+| `--bone-duration`  | `1.5s`                        | Animation duration             |
+
+The color defaults derive from the text color in effect at the skeleton, so bones contrast with whatever background the text around them is readable on. A `#333`-on-white article gets translucent dark bars. The same markup inside a dark card with light text gets translucent light bars.
 
 ## Theming
 
@@ -41,18 +43,18 @@ Or use a CSS class:
 
 ## Dark mode
 
-Dark mode works via `prefers-color-scheme`:
+Dark mode needs no configuration. Because bones derive from the text color, a dark theme's light text produces light bones, whether the theme comes from `prefers-color-scheme` or a class-based toggle.
+
+To give dark mode different bones anyway, override the properties in your dark styles:
 
 ```css
-@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) {
-  :root {
-    --bone-base: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.12);
-    --bone-highlight: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.06);
-  }
+.dark {
+  --bone-base: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.2);
+  --bone-highlight: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.1);
 }
 ```
 
-Override these in your own dark mode styles if your app uses a class-based dark mode toggle.
+One case needs a manual override: text that depends on its background for contrast, such as white text over a hero image. If the image is part of what loads, the derived white bone can vanish against the page behind it. Set `--bone-base` on that section to a color that works without the image.
 
 ## Animations
 
diff --git a/packages/bones/sandbox/auto.html b/packages/bones/sandbox/auto.html
index c469a37..15d89c6 100644
--- a/packages/bones/sandbox/auto.html
+++ b/packages/bones/sandbox/auto.html
@@ -6,6 +6,12 @@
     <title>bones auto.css sandbox</title>
     <link rel="stylesheet" href="../src/css/auto.css" />
     <style>
+      /* Follow the OS scheme so the sandbox exercises bones on both canvases.
+         Bone visibility no longer depends on it: colors derive from the text
+         color (BON-13). */
+      :root {
+        color-scheme: light dark;
+      }
       body {
         font-family: system-ui, sans-serif;
         max-width: 40rem;
diff --git a/packages/bones/sandbox/boundary.html b/packages/bones/sandbox/boundary.html
index 0c62c57..6accc60 100644
--- a/packages/bones/sandbox/boundary.html
+++ b/packages/bones/sandbox/boundary.html
@@ -6,8 +6,9 @@
     <title>bones-boundary sandbox</title>
     <link rel="stylesheet" href="../src/css/auto.css" />
     <style>
-      /* bones.css picks --bone-base from prefers-color-scheme, so the page must
-         follow the scheme too or dark-mode bones paint white on white. */
+      /* Follow the OS scheme so the sandbox exercises bones on both canvases.
+         Bone visibility no longer depends on it: colors derive from the text
+         color (BON-13). */
       :root {
         color-scheme: light dark;
       }
diff --git a/packages/bones/src/css/auto.css b/packages/bones/src/css/auto.css
index df314cb..4001183 100644
--- a/packages/bones/src/css/auto.css
+++ b/packages/bones/src/css/auto.css
@@ -44,7 +44,7 @@
       select *,
       object *
     ) {
-    color: transparent;
+    color: rgb(from currentcolor r g b / 0);
     position: relative;
     min-width: 4ch;
     min-height: 1lh;
@@ -144,7 +144,7 @@
       progress,
       meter
     ):not([data-bone], [data-bone] *, [data-bones-auto="off"], [data-bones-auto="off"] *) {
-    color: transparent;
+    color: rgb(from currentcolor r g b / 0);
     background-color: var(--bone-base);
     border-radius: var(--bone-radius);
     border-color: transparent;
diff --git a/packages/bones/src/css/bones.css b/packages/bones/src/css/bones.css
index d8dd46e..9e569a3 100644
--- a/packages/bones/src/css/bones.css
+++ b/packages/bones/src/css/bones.css
@@ -1,19 +1,18 @@
 :root {
-  --bone-base: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.12);
-  --bone-highlight: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.06);
+  /* Bones derive their color from the text color in effect at the bone, so
+     they inherit the page's own contrast guarantee on any background in any
+     scheme (BON-13). currentColor resolves where var() is used, not here.
+     The alpha reset matters: bones hide their content by zeroing the alpha
+     of the color property (never with the transparent keyword, which would
+     discard the channels), and the mix restores it. */
+  --bone-base: color-mix(in srgb, rgb(from currentcolor r g b / 1) 12%, transparent);
+  --bone-highlight: color-mix(in srgb, rgb(from currentcolor r g b / 1) 6%, transparent);
   --bone-radius: 4px;
   --bone-duration: 1.5s;
 }
 
-@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) {
-  :root {
-    --bone-base: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.12);
-    --bone-highlight: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.06);
-  }
-}
-
 [data-bone="text"] {
-  color: transparent;
+  color: rgb(from currentcolor r g b / 0);
   position: relative;
   min-width: 4ch;
   min-height: 1lh;
@@ -72,7 +71,7 @@
 
 img[data-bone="block"],
 video[data-bone="block"] {
-  color: transparent;
+  color: rgb(from currentcolor r g b / 0);
 }
 
 [data-bone="container"] {
diff --git a/packages/bones/src/element/overlay.ts b/packages/bones/src/element/overlay.ts
index 65ee133..c64c611 100644
--- a/packages/bones/src/element/overlay.ts
+++ b/packages/bones/src/element/overlay.ts
@@ -30,7 +30,7 @@ const OVERLAY_CSS = `
 }
 [part~="bone"] {
   position: absolute;
-  background: var(--bone-base, rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.12));
+  background: var(--bone-base, color-mix(in srgb, rgb(from currentcolor r g b / 1) 12%, transparent));
   border-radius: var(--bone-radius, 4px);
 }
 @keyframes bone-shimmer {
@@ -46,9 +46,9 @@ const OVERLAY_CSS = `
   animation: bone-shimmer var(--bone-duration, 1.5s) ease-in-out infinite;
   background: linear-gradient(
     90deg,
-    var(--bone-base, rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.12)) 25%,
-    var(--bone-highlight, rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.06)) 50%,
-    var(--bone-base, rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.12)) 75%
+    var(--bone-base, color-mix(in srgb, rgb(from currentcolor r g b / 1) 12%, transparent)) 25%,
+    var(--bone-highlight, color-mix(in srgb, rgb(from currentcolor r g b / 1) 6%, transparent)) 50%,
+    var(--bone-base, color-mix(in srgb, rgb(from currentcolor r g b / 1) 12%, transparent)) 75%
   );
   background-size: 200% 100%;
 }
@@ -66,7 +66,7 @@ const OVERLAY_CSS = `
   [part~="overlay"][data-bone-animate="shimmer"] [part~="bone"],
   [part~="overlay"][data-bone-animate="pulse"] [part~="bone"] {
     animation: bone-pulse 2s ease-in-out infinite;
-    background: var(--bone-base, rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.12));
+    background: var(--bone-base, color-mix(in srgb, rgb(from currentcolor r g b / 1) 12%, transparent));
     background-size: auto;
   }
 }
diff --git a/packages/bones/tests/browser/adaptive-colors.test.ts b/packages/bones/tests/browser/adaptive-colors.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5dfc2bc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/bones/tests/browser/adaptive-colors.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,68 @@
+import { afterEach, expect, test } from "vite-plus/test";
+import "../../src/css/auto.css";
+import { expectColor, parseColor } from "./expect-color.ts";
+
+// ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+// BON-13: bone colors derive from the inherited text color, not the OS
+// scheme. A dark-mode OS over a page that stays light used to paint white
+// bones on a white canvas; deriving from the text color inherits the page's
+// own contrast guarantee instead. The trap: bones hide their content via the
+// color property, so the derivation must survive that (alpha-zeroed
+// currentColor, channels intact) rather than read a transparent currentColor.
+// ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+afterEach(() => {
+  document.body.innerHTML = "";
+});
+
+function mount(html: string): HTMLElement {
+  document.body.insertAdjacentHTML("beforeend", html);
+  return document.body.lastElementChild as HTMLElement;
+}
+
+const DARK_PAGE_TEXT = "color: rgb(238, 238, 238)";
+
+test("text bone bar derives from the inherited text color", () => {
+  const root = mount(`<div style="${DARK_PAGE_TEXT}"><span data-bone="text">hidden</span></div>`);
+  const bar = getComputedStyle(root.querySelector("span")!, "::after");
+  expectColor(bar.backgroundColor, [238, 238, 238, 0.12]);
+});
+
+test("image block bone hides its alt text but keeps the inherited channels", () => {
+  const root = mount(
+    `<div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51)"><img data-bone="block" alt="avatar" width="48" height="48" /></div>`,
+  );
+  const img = getComputedStyle(root.querySelector("img")!);
+  // Alt text stays invisible…
+  expect(parseColor(img.color)[3]).toBe(0);
+  // …but the bone still paints from the inherited color, not from transparent.
+  expectColor(img.backgroundColor, [51, 51, 51, 0.12]);
+});
+
+test("auto.css text leaf bar derives from the inherited text color", () => {
+  // The data-bone-animate="none" wrapper collapses the shimmer gradient to a
+  // solid background-color; without it the bar's paint lives in
+  // background-image. The attribute must wrap the busy region — its @scope
+  // does not take effect from the aria-busy element itself.
+  const root = mount(
+    `<div data-bone-animate="none"><section aria-busy="true" style="${DARK_PAGE_TEXT}"><p>some copy</p></section></div>`,
+  );
+  const bar = getComputedStyle(root.querySelector("p")!, "::after");
+  expectColor(bar.backgroundColor, [238, 238, 238, 0.12]);
+});
+
+test("auto.css block bone derives from the inherited text color", () => {
+  const root = mount(
+    `<div data-bone-animate="none"><section aria-busy="true" style="${DARK_PAGE_TEXT}"><img alt="avatar" width="48" height="48" /></section></div>`,
+  );
+  const img = getComputedStyle(root.querySelector("img")!);
+  expectColor(img.backgroundColor, [238, 238, 238, 0.12]);
+});
+
+test("default text color keeps today's black-at-12% bones", () => {
+  // Chromium's default color is black, so pages that never set a color get
+  // exactly the value the library shipped before the derivation change.
+  const root = mount(`<div><span data-bone="text">hidden</span></div>`);
+  const bar = getComputedStyle(root.querySelector("span")!, "::after");
+  expectColor(bar.backgroundColor, [0, 0, 0, 0.12]);
+});
diff --git a/packages/bones/tests/browser/expect-color.ts b/packages/bones/tests/browser/expect-color.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f005f2b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/bones/tests/browser/expect-color.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+import { expect } from "vite-plus/test";
+
+// Chromium serializes the same computed color as "rgba(r, g, b, a)" in the
+// light DOM but "color(srgb r g b / a)" inside shadow roots and for relative
+// colors. Compare channels, not strings.
+export function parseColor(value: string): [number, number, number, number] {
+  let m = value.match(/^rgba?\((\d+), (\d+), (\d+)(?:, ([\d.]+))?\)$/);
+  if (m) return [+m[1], +m[2], +m[3], m[4] === undefined ? 1 : +m[4]];
+  m = value.match(/^color\(srgb ([\d.]+) ([\d.]+) ([\d.]+)(?: \/ ([\d.]+))?\)$/);
+  if (m) return [+m[1] * 255, +m[2] * 255, +m[3] * 255, m[4] === undefined ? 1 : +m[4]];
+  throw new Error(`unrecognized color: ${value}`);
+}
+
+export function expectColor(value: string, [r, g, b, a]: [number, number, number, number]): void {
+  const [vr, vg, vb, va] = parseColor(value);
+  expect(vr).toBeCloseTo(r, 0);
+  expect(vg).toBeCloseTo(g, 0);
+  expect(vb).toBeCloseTo(b, 0);
+  expect(va).toBeCloseTo(a, 2);
+}
diff --git a/packages/bones/tests/browser/overlay-fallback.test.ts b/packages/bones/tests/browser/overlay-fallback.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3b4619e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/bones/tests/browser/overlay-fallback.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,30 @@
+import { afterEach, test } from "vite-plus/test";
+import "../../src/element/index.ts";
+import type { BonesBoundary } from "../../src/element/index.ts";
+import { expectColor } from "./expect-color.ts";
+
+// ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+// BON-13, shadow overlay edition: when no stylesheet is loaded, the measured
+// bars fall back to the literals baked into the overlay's shadow CSS. Those
+// fallbacks must derive from the host's inherited color like the stylesheet
+// does — a fixed rgba(0,0,0,…) fallback disappears on a dark page.
+// Deliberately no CSS imports in this file.
+// ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+afterEach(() => {
+  document.body.innerHTML = "";
+});
+
+test("measured bars without stylesheets derive from the inherited color", () => {
+  document.body.insertAdjacentHTML(
+    "beforeend",
+    `<bones-boundary force precision="measured" transition="none" min-duration="0"
+       data-bone-animate="none"
+       style="width: 20ch; font: 16px/1.5 monospace; color: rgb(238, 238, 238);">
+       <p style="margin: 0">aaaa bbbb</p>
+     </bones-boundary>`,
+  );
+  const el = document.querySelector<BonesBoundary>("bones-boundary")!;
+  const bar = el.shadowRoot!.querySelector<HTMLElement>('[part~="bone"]')!;
+  expectColor(getComputedStyle(bar).backgroundColor, [238, 238, 238, 0.12]);
+});