diff --git a/authbridge/demos/session-budget/hitl-with-claude-code.md b/authbridge/demos/session-budget/hitl-with-claude-code.md
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+# HITL pause mode with Claude Code — local demo
+
+A variant of [`hitl-local.md`](hitl-local.md) that swaps the Ollama +
+`curl` driver for **Claude Code**. Same Redis, same approver, same
+pause-mode contract — the new pieces are a TLS bridge (so HTTPS from
+`claude` is decrypted before the parsers see it) and Claude Code as
+the client. If you don't need an Anthropic account in the loop, use
+[`hitl-local.md`](hitl-local.md) instead — same demo, less setup.
+
+The [README quickstart][qs] `install-demo.sh` binary isn't compiled
+with `include_plugin_sessionbudget`, so this doc builds
+`authbridge-proxy` from source with the tag on.
+
+[qs]: ../../../README.md#quick-start-local-no-kubernetes
+
+## Prerequisites
+
+On top of [`hitl-local.md` § Prerequisites](hitl-local.md#prerequisites)
+(Docker, Go), you also need:
+
+- `claude` CLI (`npm i -g @anthropic-ai/claude-code`) and a working
+  Anthropic credential — either `ANTHROPIC_API_KEY` for direct API
+  access, or `ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL` + `ANTHROPIC_AUTH_TOKEN` for a
+  gateway (LiteLLM, internal proxy)
+
+Ollama is not needed — Claude Code replaces it.
+
+## Setup
+
+### 1. Redis and the proxy binary
+
+Follow [`hitl-local.md` § Start Redis](hitl-local.md#start-redis) and
+[§ Build the proxy binary](hitl-local.md#build-the-proxy-binary-once).
+
+### 2. Config
+
+Use [`local/config-https.yaml`](local/config-https.yaml). Compared to
+`hitl-local.md`'s `local/config.yaml` it adds `tls_bridge` (so the
+proxy can decrypt HTTPS) and `mcp-parser` + `a2a-parser` (so agentic
+tool traffic is classified alongside inference).
+
+### 3. Launch the approver and proxy
+
+Approver, in its own terminal (see [`hitl-local.md` § Terminal 1 — the
+approver](hitl-local.md#terminal-1--the-approver) for the expected
+banner):
+
+```bash
+cd authbridge/demos/session-budget/local
+go run ./approver.go
+```
+
+Proxy, from the repo root:
+
+```bash
+./authbridge/cmd/authbridge-proxy/authbridge-proxy \
+  -config ./authbridge/demos/session-budget/local/config-https.yaml
+```
+
+`:8082` must be free — the proxy always opens a transparent listener
+there even in `roles: [forward]`, and a stale `authbridge-proxy` from
+a prior run will fail boot with `address already in use`. If that
+happens: `pkill -f authbridge-proxy` and relaunch.
+
+The proxy generates `cortex-ca/ca.crt` (relative to the directory it
+runs from) on first launch — that's the trust anchor Claude Code
+needs. From the repo root that resolves to
+`<repo-root>/cortex-ca/ca.crt`; grab the absolute path with
+`ls "$(pwd)/cortex-ca/ca.crt"` from the same terminal. Look for these
+lines in the log:
+
+```text
+level=WARN msg="tls-bridge: generated self-signed CA ..." ca_dir=cortex-ca ...
+level=INFO msg="tls-bridge enabled" ca_dir=cortex-ca
+level=INFO msg="HTTP server listening" name=forward-proxy addr=127.0.0.1:47600
+level=INFO msg="authbridge-proxy starting" mode=proxy-sidecar
+```
+
+### 4. Launch Claude Code through the proxy
+
+In a project-scoped `.claude/settings.local.json` (in the directory
+you'll launch `claude` from — Claude Code gitignores this file, so
+the proxy env stays local to this demo and out of shared project
+settings and out of `~/.claude/settings.json`):
+
+```json
+{
+  "env": {
+    "HTTPS_PROXY": "http://127.0.0.1:47600",
+    "NODE_EXTRA_CA_CERTS": "/absolute/path/to/cortex-ca/ca.crt",
+    "CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_NONESSENTIAL_TRAFFIC": "1"
+  }
+}
+```
+
+`NODE_EXTRA_CA_CERTS` must be an absolute path — settings files do
+no `$PWD` / `~` expansion.
+
+Keep `ANTHROPIC_AUTH_TOKEN` (and any other credential) in the process
+environment or a secret store — export it in the shell that launches
+`claude`, don't paste it into `.claude/settings.local.json`. If you
+use `ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL` for a gateway, that URL is fine in the same
+`env` block alongside the proxy vars. The forward proxy MITMs whatever
+host Claude Code speaks HTTPS to, and gateway-fronted deployments hit
+`/v1/messages` the same as direct Anthropic — the parsers work on both.
+
+Start an interactive Claude Code session from that directory:
+
+```bash
+claude
+```
+
+The REPL keeps one HTTPS connection open through the proxy so you can
+send several turns in a row and drive the approver alongside.
+
+## Drive it
+
+At the Claude Code prompt, send a short message (e.g. `reply with
+the word: ok`), wait for the response, then send another. One
+interactive turn on this LiteLLM path measured ~42.7k prompt tokens
+(system prompt + cached context), so `max_tokens: 40000` in
+`config-https.yaml` trips on turn 2 — turn 1 is evaluated against an
+empty counter and passes.
+
+What to watch:
+
+- **Turn 1 (under budget)** — responds normally. Proxy logs
+  `inference-parser: response ... promptTokens=... completionTokens=...`;
+  `HGETALL session-budget:default` shows `tokens` jump by that turn's
+  prompt+completion.
+- **Turn 2 (previous response pushed the counter over)** — approval
+  requested. The plugin checks cached counters at request time, sees
+  the limit exceeded from turn 1's recorded response, and pauses this
+  turn. Proxy logs `budget exceeded, requesting approval` with
+  `reason="token limit reached: <n>/40000"`; the approver prints the
+  pause prompt (same format as [`hitl-local.md` § Terminal 3][t3]).
+
+[t3]: hitl-local.md#terminal-3--drive-it-with-curl
+
+  - Type `a` → the turn completes.
+  - Type `d` → Claude Code surfaces the 403 as
+    ```text
+    Failed to authenticate. API Error: 403 token limit reached: <n>/40000 (approval denied)
+    ```
+
+Claude Code retries internally on 403, so a single denied turn fires
+the pause webhook several times (~7 in our tests) before surfacing
+the error. With `pause_grace_period: 1ms` every retry re-prompts —
+approve one, deny the next, without restarting. To survive real
+agentic work (file reads, tool calls), raise `max_tokens` in
+`config-https.yaml`; hot-reload picks it up.
+
+## Shadow mode: measure before you block
+
+Swap in [`local/config-https-observe.yaml`](local/config-https-observe.yaml)
+(`on_exceed: "observe"`) to count tokens without blocking or calling
+the approver — useful for sizing `max_tokens` against real traffic
+before switching to `pause`. Every over-budget turn logs:
+
+```text
+level=WARN msg="budget exceeded (shadow mode)" plugin=session-budget \
+  reason="token limit reached: 42292/100" tokens=42292 calls=1
+```
+
+The request continues when the budget is exceeded, and Redis keeps
+accumulating. Skip the approver terminal entirely.
+
+## Reset, auto modes, and cleanup
+
+See [`hitl-local.md`](hitl-local.md) —
+[§ Reset between runs](hitl-local.md#reset-between-runs),
+[§ Auto modes for CI](hitl-local.md#auto-modes-for-ci),
+[§ Cleanup](hitl-local.md#cleanup). Add `rm -rf cortex-ca` in the
+directory the proxy ran from if you want to regenerate the CA on the
+next run — the new `ca.crt` has a fresh serial, so re-point
+`NODE_EXTRA_CA_CERTS` in `.claude/settings.local.json` at it (same
+absolute path if you relaunch from the same directory) or `claude`
+will fail the TLS handshake against the proxy.
+
+## Caveats
+
+- **`default_session_fallback: true`** pools all egress into one Redis
+  bucket. Fine for a single-workload laptop demo; in multi-tenant
+  deployments one caller exhausting the budget denies all others.
+  Leave it off in production and rely on the inbound A2A session ID.
+- **`--demo` overwrites `cortex-ca/demo.yaml`.** If you also run
+  `authbridge-proxy --demo` in the same directory, it will clobber the
+  config from step 2. Use a separate working directory or a config
+  path outside `cortex-ca/`.
diff --git a/authbridge/demos/session-budget/local/config-https-observe.yaml b/authbridge/demos/session-budget/local/config-https-observe.yaml
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+# Variant of config-https.yaml for shadow-mode operation: on_exceed=observe.
+# Over-budget turns are logged and counted in Redis but NOT blocked, and
+# there is no approver in the loop. Use this to size max_tokens before
+# switching to on_exceed=pause. See ../hitl-with-claude-code.md.
+mode: proxy-sidecar
+listener:
+  roles: [forward]
+  forward_proxy_addr: 127.0.0.1:47600
+  session_api_addr: 127.0.0.1:47601
+stats:
+  address: 127.0.0.1:47602
+tls_bridge:
+  mode: enabled
+  ca_dir: "cortex-ca"
+  generate_ca: true
+pipeline:
+  outbound:
+    plugins:
+      # Order matters: RunResponseFrame dispatches in REVERSE
+      # declaration order, so session-budget (reads
+      # Inference.TotalTokens) must be declared BEFORE
+      # inference-parser (populates it).
+      - name: session-budget
+        config:
+          redis_url: "redis://localhost:6379"
+          # Deliberately tiny so the very first Claude Code turn breaches
+          # and you see the shadow WARN on turn 2. Raise for real sizing.
+          max_tokens: 100
+          max_calls: 1000000              # effectively unlimited; we
+                                          # let max_tokens trigger first
+          on_exceed: "observe"
+          session_ttl_seconds: 300
+          default_session_fallback: true  # no inbound A2A session —
+                                          # pool all egress into
+                                          # 'default'
+      - inference-parser
+      - mcp-parser
+      - a2a-parser
diff --git a/authbridge/demos/session-budget/local/config-https.yaml b/authbridge/demos/session-budget/local/config-https.yaml
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+++ b/authbridge/demos/session-budget/local/config-https.yaml
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+# Variant of config.yaml for HTTPS drivers (e.g. Claude Code) that speak
+# TLS to their model endpoint. Adds tls_bridge so the proxy can decrypt,
+# and mcp-parser + a2a-parser so agentic tool traffic is classified.
+# See ../hitl-with-claude-code.md.
+mode: proxy-sidecar
+listener:
+  roles: [forward]
+  forward_proxy_addr: 127.0.0.1:47600
+  session_api_addr: 127.0.0.1:47601
+stats:
+  address: 127.0.0.1:47602
+tls_bridge:
+  mode: enabled
+  ca_dir: "cortex-ca"
+  generate_ca: true
+pipeline:
+  outbound:
+    plugins:
+      # Order matters: RunResponseFrame dispatches in REVERSE
+      # declaration order, so session-budget (reads
+      # Inference.TotalTokens) must be declared BEFORE
+      # inference-parser (populates it).
+      - name: session-budget
+        config:
+          redis_url: "redis://localhost:6379"
+          max_tokens: 40000
+          max_calls: 1000000              # effectively unlimited; we
+                                          # let max_tokens trigger first
+          on_exceed: "pause"
+          pause_webhook: "http://localhost:9099"
+          pause_timeout: "120s"
+          pause_timeout_action: "deny"
+          pause_grace_period: "1ms"
+          session_ttl_seconds: 300
+          default_session_fallback: true  # no inbound A2A session —
+                                          # pool all egress into
+                                          # 'default'
+      - inference-parser
+      - mcp-parser
+      - a2a-parser