diff --git a/bin/fm-session-start.sh b/bin/fm-session-start.sh
index 8e82477a53..d47e937492 100755
--- a/bin/fm-session-start.sh
+++ b/bin/fm-session-start.sh
@@ -257,16 +257,30 @@ print_backlog_tasks_axi_compact() {
   fi
 }
 
+# print_backlog_beads_compact - beads-authority migration Stage 2 (see
+# data/beads-authority-migration-scout/report.md section 4). Mirrors
+# data/backlog.md's `## In flight`/`## Queued` structure instead of listing
+# only bd's native --ready set, which silently drops in_progress/blocked
+# work from the digest. Both sections are scoped by fm_beads_fleet_label so
+# this stays firstmate's fleet view, not the shared federated store's full
+# cross-project set (same label fm-fleet-snapshot.sh's Stage 1 beads read
+# uses). Any read failure falls back to the whole title-line rendering, same
+# as before Stage 2.
 print_backlog_beads_compact() {
-  local path=$1 out rc
-  printf 'compact backlog listing (beads task store; max %s item(s))\n' "$BACKLOG_LIMIT"
-  out=$(task list --ready --limit "$BACKLOG_LIMIT" 2>&1)
-  rc=$?
-  if [ "$rc" -eq 0 ]; then
-    printf '%s\n' "$out"
+  local path=$1 label out_inflight rc_inflight out_queued rc_queued
+  label=$(fm_beads_fleet_label)
+  printf 'compact backlog listing (beads task store; label %s; max %s item(s) per section)\n' "$label" "$BACKLOG_LIMIT"
+  out_inflight=$(task list --label "$label" --status in_progress,blocked --limit "$BACKLOG_LIMIT" 2>&1)
+  rc_inflight=$?
+  out_queued=$(task list --label "$label" --ready --limit "$BACKLOG_LIMIT" 2>&1)
+  rc_queued=$?
+  if [ "$rc_inflight" -eq 0 ] && [ "$rc_queued" -eq 0 ]; then
+    printf '## In flight\n%s\n' "$out_inflight"
+    printf '## Queued\n%s\n' "$out_queued"
   else
     printf 'beads task listing failed; falling back to title-line rendering.\n'
-    printf '%s\n' "$out"
+    printf '%s\n' "$out_inflight"
+    printf '%s\n' "$out_queued"
     if [ -f "$path" ]; then
       print_backlog_manual_compact "$path" "fallback"
     fi
diff --git a/docs/configuration.md b/docs/configuration.md
index 4469930014..cd7ae77f00 100644
--- a/docs/configuration.md
+++ b/docs/configuration.md
@@ -52,16 +52,18 @@ Because bootstrap requires `tasks-axi` on `PATH` on every profile, that delegati
 Compatible means the shared bootstrap probe accepts `tasks-axi --version` as 0.1.1 or newer, `tasks-axi update --help` exposes `--archive-body`, and `tasks-axi mv --help` exposes `[<id>...]` for the atomic multi-ID move introduced in 0.2.2 and required by handoff delegation.
 That sentence is the single owner of the tasks-axi compatibility definition; every other document points here instead of restating the version gates.
 Bootstrap requires compatible `tasks-axi` on every profile; see "Toolchain" below for missing-tool reporting and silent default-backend behavior.
-Set the local, gitignored `config/backlog-backend` file to `beads` to use the beads federated `task` store as the queue source; session-start's digest will list the store's native ready set (via `task list --ready`, bd's dependency-derived readiness with no manual tagging) instead of `data/backlog.md`.
+Set the local, gitignored `config/backlog-backend` file to `beads` to use the beads federated `task` store as the queue source instead of `data/backlog.md`.
+Session-start's digest mirrors `data/backlog.md`'s `## In flight`/`## Queued` split with two beads-sourced sections, both scoped by the firstmate-fleet label below: **In flight** is `task list --label <label> --status in_progress,blocked`, and **Queued** is `task list --label <label> --ready` (bd's dependency-derived readiness with no manual tagging).
+If either read fails, the whole listing falls back to the title-line rendering of `data/backlog.md` rather than printing a partial digest.
 Beads requires the `task` CLI on `PATH` and access to the active beads store.
 Bootstrap validates the beads backend and reports a `MISSING:` line if the CLI is absent or the store is unreachable.
 Set the local, gitignored `config/backlog-backend` file to `manual` to force manual backlog editing and suppress the verbose `BOOTSTRAP_INFO: tasks-axi available` fact, not missing-tool reporting.
 Absent or `tasks-axi` selects the default tasks-axi backend.
 The file format is unchanged in tasks-axi and manual modes; both produce the same `## In flight`, `## Queued`, and `## Done` sections in `data/backlog.md`.
 The beads backend does not use `data/backlog.md`; all backlog state lives in the beads store and is queried dynamically at session start.
-Under the beads backend, firstmate's own dispatched-work beads are meant to carry a firstmate-fleet label, `fleet:firstmate` by default (overridable only for test fixtures via `FM_BEADS_FLEET_LABEL`), once bead creation is wired to it, so a `task list --label <that label>` call scopes to firstmate's fleet instead of surfacing the shared federated store's full cross-project set; as of Stage 1 no `bin/` code creates a bead with that label yet, only the reads below query by it.
+Under the beads backend, firstmate's own dispatched-work beads are meant to carry a firstmate-fleet label, `fleet:firstmate` by default (overridable only for test fixtures via `FM_BEADS_FLEET_LABEL`), once bead creation is wired to it, so a `task list --label <that label>` call scopes to firstmate's fleet instead of surfacing the shared federated store's full cross-project set; as of Stage 2 no `bin/` code creates a bead with that label yet, only the reads below query by it.
 `bin/fm-tasks-axi-lib.sh`'s `fm_beads_fleet_label` is the single owner of that label; read it from there rather than hardcoding it.
-The structured fleet snapshot (`bin/fm-fleet-snapshot.sh --json`) and Bearings (`bin/fm-bearings-snapshot.sh`) also read this fleet's in-flight/queued beads, scoped by that label, when the beads backend is selected; with any other backend their output is unchanged.
+The structured fleet snapshot (`bin/fm-fleet-snapshot.sh --json`), Bearings (`bin/fm-bearings-snapshot.sh`), and session-start's compact digest above all read this fleet's in-flight/queued beads, scoped by that label, when the beads backend is selected; with any other backend their output is unchanged.
 That beads-sourced view currently covers only status open/in_progress/blocked beads mapped to `records[]` state `queued`/`in_flight`; per-bead dependency graphs and correlation with local `state/*.meta` are not yet wired through, so `blocked_by_ids` is always empty and `requires_child_metadata`/`captain_actionable` are always false for a beads-sourced record.
 
 ## Runtime backend (config/backend / FM_BACKEND)
diff --git a/tests/fm-session-start.test.sh b/tests/fm-session-start.test.sh
index 5f2b0307ce..38523709cf 100755
--- a/tests/fm-session-start.test.sh
+++ b/tests/fm-session-start.test.sh
@@ -146,9 +146,10 @@ SH
 }
 
 # make_fake_task_beads_compact <fakebin>: a fake `task` (beads) CLI whose
-# `list --limit 1` (availability probe) and `list --ready` (compact listing)
-# both succeed, so a regression back to the empty `--label "status:ready"`
-# query is caught by asserting the exact --ready invocation and its output.
+# `list --limit 1` (availability probe), `list --label fleet:firstmate
+# --status in_progress,blocked` (In flight section), and `list --label
+# fleet:firstmate --ready` (Queued section) all succeed, each scoped by the
+# firstmate-fleet label so unscoped or wrong-status regressions are caught.
 make_fake_task_beads_compact() {
   local fakebin=$1
   cat > "$fakebin/task" <<'SH'
@@ -161,11 +162,13 @@ case "$*" in
     printf '%s\n' 'fake-ready-1'
     exit 0
     ;;
-  *'--label '*'status:ready'*)
-    printf '%s\n' 'No issues found'
+  *'--label fleet:firstmate'*'--status in_progress,blocked'*)
+    case "$*" in *'--limit 80'*) : ;; *) printf '%s\n' 'missing compact limit' >&2; exit 9 ;; esac
+    printf '%s\n' 'inflight-task-1'
+    printf '%s\n' 'inflight-task-2'
     exit 0
     ;;
-  *'--ready'*)
+  *'--label fleet:firstmate'*'--ready'*)
     case "$*" in *'--limit 80'*) : ;; *) printf '%s\n' 'missing compact limit' >&2; exit 9 ;; esac
     printf '%s\n' 'ready-task-1'
     printf '%s\n' 'ready-task-2'
@@ -177,6 +180,37 @@ SH
   chmod +x "$fakebin/task"
 }
 
+# make_fake_task_beads_inflight_read_fails <fakebin>: same availability probe
+# as make_fake_task_beads_compact, but the In flight `--status
+# in_progress,blocked` call fails while the Queued `--ready` call would
+# otherwise succeed, so the whole beads listing must fall back to title-line
+# rendering rather than printing a partial digest.
+make_fake_task_beads_inflight_read_fails() {
+  local fakebin=$1
+  cat > "$fakebin/task" <<'SH'
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+set -u
+log=${FM_FAKE_TASK_LOG:-}
+[ -n "$log" ] && printf '%s\n' "$*" >> "$log"
+case "$*" in
+  'list --limit 1')
+    printf '%s\n' 'fake-ready-1'
+    exit 0
+    ;;
+  *'--status in_progress,blocked'*)
+    printf '%s\n' 'store timeout' >&2
+    exit 1
+    ;;
+  *'--ready'*)
+    printf '%s\n' 'ready-task-1'
+    exit 0
+    ;;
+esac
+exit 1
+SH
+  chmod +x "$fakebin/task"
+}
+
 # make_fake_ps_claude <fakebin>: harness_pid()/holder_alive() (fm-lock.sh) walk
 # `ps` output looking for a harness command name; this fake reports EVERY
 # queried pid as a live `claude` harness, so the very first ancestry check
@@ -1311,7 +1345,7 @@ EOF
   pass "unavailable or incompatible tasks-axi falls back to compact manual backlog rendering"
 }
 
-test_backlog_compact_beads_uses_ready_filter_not_empty_label() {
+test_backlog_compact_beads_shows_inflight_and_queued_sections() {
   local rec root home fakebin out log
   rec=$(new_world backlog-compact-beads)
   IFS='|' read -r root home fakebin <<EOF
@@ -1325,16 +1359,44 @@ EOF
 
   out=$(FM_FAKE_TASK_LOG="$log" run_session_start "$home" "$root" "$fakebin:$BASE_PATH")
 
-  assert_contains "$out" "compact backlog listing (beads task store; max 80 item(s))" \
-    "beads backend did not render the compact backlog listing"
-  assert_contains "$out" "ready-task-1" "beads compact listing omitted a ready item from bd's native --ready filter"
-  assert_contains "$out" "ready-task-2" "beads compact listing omitted a second ready item"
-  assert_not_contains "$out" "No issues found" \
-    "beads backend queried the empty status:ready label instead of bd's native --ready filter"
-  assert_grep "list --ready --limit 80" "$log" \
-    "session start did not ask beads for its native --ready set with the bounded limit"
+  assert_contains "$out" "compact backlog listing (beads task store; label fleet:firstmate; max 80 item(s) per section)" \
+    "beads backend did not render the labeled compact backlog listing"
+  assert_contains "$out" "## In flight" "beads backend digest is missing the In flight section heading"
+  assert_contains "$out" "inflight-task-1" "beads compact listing omitted an in_progress/blocked item from the In flight section"
+  assert_contains "$out" "inflight-task-2" "beads compact listing omitted a second In flight item"
+  assert_contains "$out" "## Queued" "beads backend digest is missing the Queued section heading"
+  assert_contains "$out" "ready-task-1" "beads compact listing omitted a ready item from the Queued section"
+  assert_contains "$out" "ready-task-2" "beads compact listing omitted a second Queued item"
+  assert_grep "list --label fleet:firstmate --status in_progress,blocked --limit 80" "$log" \
+    "session start did not query beads for its own fleet's in_progress/blocked set with the bounded limit"
+  assert_grep "list --label fleet:firstmate --ready --limit 80" "$log" \
+    "session start did not query beads for its own fleet's ready set with the bounded limit"
+
+  pass "beads backend digest shows In flight (in_progress/blocked) and Queued (ready) sections, both scoped by the fleet label"
+}
+
+test_backlog_compact_beads_partial_failure_falls_back_to_manual() {
+  local rec root home fakebin out
+  rec=$(new_world backlog-compact-beads-partial-failure)
+  IFS='|' read -r root home fakebin <<EOF
+$rec
+EOF
+  make_fake_toolchain "$fakebin"
+  make_fake_ps_claude "$fakebin"
+  make_fake_task_beads_inflight_read_fails "$fakebin"
+  printf '%s\n' beads > "$home/config/backlog-backend"
+  write_long_body_backlog "$home/data/backlog.md"
+
+  out=$(run_session_start "$home" "$root" "$fakebin:$BASE_PATH")
+
+  assert_contains "$out" "beads task listing failed; falling back to title-line rendering." \
+    "a failed In flight beads read did not trigger the whole-listing fallback"
+  assert_contains "$out" "- [ ] compact-startup - Compact startup digest" \
+    "beads read failure fallback omitted the In flight backlog title line"
+  assert_contains "$out" "- [ ] blocked-followup - Follow compact startup" \
+    "beads read failure fallback omitted the Queued backlog title line - a partial digest was printed instead of the full title-line fallback"
 
-  pass "beads backend lists bd's native ready set, not the empty status:ready label query"
+  pass "a failed In flight beads read falls back to the whole title-line rendering rather than a partial digest"
 }
 
 # --- fleet-state digest: no in-flight tasks ----------------------------------
@@ -1574,7 +1636,8 @@ test_composition_invokes_real_scripts
 test_backlog_compact_tasks_axi_omits_bodies_and_keeps_metadata
 test_backlog_compact_manual_backend_skips_indented_bodies
 test_backlog_compact_tasks_axi_unavailable_uses_manual_fallback
-test_backlog_compact_beads_uses_ready_filter_not_empty_label
+test_backlog_compact_beads_shows_inflight_and_queued_sections
+test_backlog_compact_beads_partial_failure_falls_back_to_manual
 test_fleet_digest_empty_fleet
 test_next_step_sources_x_mode_cadence
 test_next_step_afk_delegates_to_daemon