diff --git a/src/agent/tools/memory.rs b/src/agent/tools/memory.rs
index ae8081b..58eaa20 100644
--- a/src/agent/tools/memory.rs
+++ b/src/agent/tools/memory.rs
@@ -1,15 +1,38 @@
 use std::sync::Arc;
 // tools/memory.rs — Native memory graph operations
 //
-// Direct library calls into the store — no subprocess spawning.
-// One function per tool for use in the Tool registry.
+// If running in the daemon process (STORE_HANDLE set), accesses
+// the store directly. Otherwise forwards to the daemon via socket.
 
 use anyhow::{Context, Result};
+use std::sync::OnceLock;
 
 use crate::hippocampus::memory::MemoryNode;
 use crate::store::StoreView;
 use crate::store::Store;
 
+// ── Store handle ───────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+/// Global store handle. Set by daemon at startup.
+/// If None, tools forward to daemon socket.
+static STORE_HANDLE: OnceLock<Arc<crate::Mutex<Store>>> = OnceLock::new();
+
+// Thread-local store for rpc_local fallback path.
+thread_local! {
+    static LOCAL_STORE: std::cell::RefCell<Option<Arc<crate::Mutex<Store>>>> =
+        const { std::cell::RefCell::new(None) };
+}
+
+/// Set the global store handle. Call once at daemon startup.
+pub fn set_store(store: Arc<crate::Mutex<Store>>) {
+    STORE_HANDLE.set(store).ok();
+}
+
+/// Check if we're running in daemon mode (have direct store access).
+pub fn is_daemon() -> bool {
+    STORE_HANDLE.get().is_some() || LOCAL_STORE.with(|s| s.borrow().is_some())
+}
+
 // ── Helpers ────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
 fn get_str<'a>(args: &'a serde_json::Value, name: &'a str) -> Result<&'a str> {
@@ -20,17 +43,92 @@ fn get_f64(args: &serde_json::Value, name: &str) -> Result<f64> {
     args.get(name).and_then(|v| v.as_f64()).context(format!("{} is required", name))
 }
 
-async fn cached_store() -> Result<std::sync::Arc<crate::Mutex<Store>>> {
+async fn cached_store() -> Result<Arc<crate::Mutex<Store>>> {
+    // Check thread-local first (rpc_local fallback path)
+    if let Some(store) = LOCAL_STORE.with(|s| s.borrow().clone()) {
+        return Ok(store);
+    }
+    // Use global handle if set (daemon mode)
+    if let Some(store) = STORE_HANDLE.get() {
+        return Ok(store.clone());
+    }
+    // Fallback to loading (for backwards compat during transition)
     Store::cached().await.map_err(|e| anyhow::anyhow!("{}", e))
 }
 
-async fn get_provenance(agent: &Option<std::sync::Arc<crate::agent::Agent>>) -> String {
+/// Run a tool with a temporarily-opened store (for rpc_local fallback).
+pub fn run_with_local_store(tool_name: &str, args: serde_json::Value) -> Result<String> {
+    let store = Store::load().map_err(|e| anyhow::anyhow!("{}", e))?;
+    let arc = Arc::new(crate::Mutex::new(store));
+
+    LOCAL_STORE.with(|s| *s.borrow_mut() = Some(arc));
+    let result = std::panic::catch_unwind(std::panic::AssertUnwindSafe(|| {
+        let name = tool_name.to_string();
+        tokio::runtime::Builder::new_current_thread()
+            .enable_all()
+            .build()
+            .unwrap()
+            .block_on(dispatch(&name, &None, args))
+    }));
+    LOCAL_STORE.with(|s| *s.borrow_mut() = None);
+
+    result.map_err(|_| anyhow::anyhow!("tool panicked"))?
+}
+
+/// Get provenance from agent, or from args._provenance, or "manual".
+async fn get_provenance(agent: &Option<std::sync::Arc<crate::agent::Agent>>, args: &serde_json::Value) -> String {
+    // Check args first (set by RPC path)
+    if let Some(p) = args.get("_provenance").and_then(|v| v.as_str()) {
+        return p.to_string();
+    }
     match agent {
         Some(a) => a.state.lock().await.provenance.clone(),
         None => "manual".to_string(),
     }
 }
 
+/// Single entry point for all memory/journal tool calls.
+/// If not daemon, forwards to daemon with provenance attached.
+async fn dispatch(
+    tool_name: &str,
+    agent: &Option<std::sync::Arc<crate::agent::Agent>>,
+    args: serde_json::Value,
+) -> Result<String> {
+    if !is_daemon() {
+        // Forward to daemon, attaching provenance
+        let mut args = args;
+        if let Some(a) = agent {
+            let prov = a.state.lock().await.provenance.clone();
+            args.as_object_mut().map(|o| o.insert("_provenance".into(), prov.into()));
+        }
+        let name = tool_name.to_string();
+        return tokio::task::spawn_blocking(move || {
+            crate::mcp_server::memory_rpc(&name, args)
+        }).await.map_err(|e| anyhow::anyhow!("spawn_blocking: {}", e))?;
+    }
+
+    // Daemon path - dispatch to implementation
+    match tool_name {
+        "memory_render" => render(&args).await,
+        "memory_write" => write(agent, &args).await,
+        "memory_search" => search(&args).await,
+        "memory_links" => links(&args).await,
+        "memory_link_set" => link_set(&args).await,
+        "memory_link_add" => link_add(agent, &args).await,
+        "memory_used" => used(&args).await,
+        "memory_weight_set" => weight_set(&args).await,
+        "memory_rename" => rename(&args).await,
+        "memory_supersede" => supersede(agent, &args).await,
+        "memory_query" => query(&args).await,
+        "graph_topology" => graph_topology().await,
+        "graph_health" => graph_health().await,
+        "journal_tail" => journal_tail(&args).await,
+        "journal_new" => journal_new(agent, &args).await,
+        "journal_update" => journal_update(agent, &args).await,
+        _ => anyhow::bail!("unknown tool: {}", tool_name),
+    }
+}
+
 // ── Definitions ────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
 pub fn memory_tools() -> [super::Tool; 13] {
@@ -38,34 +136,34 @@ pub fn memory_tools() -> [super::Tool; 13] {
     [
         Tool { name: "memory_render", description: "Read a memory node's content and links.",
                parameters_json: r#"{"type":"object","properties":{"key":{"type":"string","description":"Node key"}},"required":["key"]}"#,
-               handler: Arc::new(|_a, v| Box::pin(async move { render(&v).await })) },
+               handler: Arc::new(|a, v| Box::pin(async move { dispatch("memory_render", &a, v).await })) },
         Tool { name: "memory_write", description: "Create or update a memory node.",
                parameters_json: r#"{"type":"object","properties":{"key":{"type":"string","description":"Node key"},"content":{"type":"string","description":"Full content (markdown)"}},"required":["key","content"]}"#,
-               handler: Arc::new(|a, v| Box::pin(async move { write(&a, &v).await })) },
+               handler: Arc::new(|a, v| Box::pin(async move { dispatch("memory_write", &a, v).await })) },
         Tool { name: "memory_search", description: "Search the memory graph via spreading activation. Give 2-4 seed node keys.",
                parameters_json: r#"{"type":"object","properties":{"keys":{"type":"array","items":{"type":"string"},"description":"Seed node keys to activate from"}},"required":["keys"]}"#,
-               handler: Arc::new(|_a, v| Box::pin(async move { search(&v).await })) },
+               handler: Arc::new(|a, v| Box::pin(async move { dispatch("memory_search", &a, v).await })) },
         Tool { name: "memory_links", description: "Show a node's neighbors with link strengths.",
                parameters_json: r#"{"type":"object","properties":{"key":{"type":"string","description":"Node key"}},"required":["key"]}"#,
-               handler: Arc::new(|_a, v| Box::pin(async move { links(&v) })) },
+               handler: Arc::new(|a, v| Box::pin(async move { dispatch("memory_links", &a, v).await })) },
         Tool { name: "memory_link_set", description: "Set link strength between two nodes.",
                parameters_json: r#"{"type":"object","properties":{"source":{"type":"string"},"target":{"type":"string"},"strength":{"type":"number","description":"0.01 to 1.0"}},"required":["source","target","strength"]}"#,
-               handler: Arc::new(|_a, v| Box::pin(async move { link_set(&v).await })) },
+               handler: Arc::new(|a, v| Box::pin(async move { dispatch("memory_link_set", &a, v).await })) },
         Tool { name: "memory_link_add", description: "Add a new link between two nodes.",
                parameters_json: r#"{"type":"object","properties":{"source":{"type":"string"},"target":{"type":"string"}},"required":["source","target"]}"#,
-               handler: Arc::new(|a, v| Box::pin(async move { link_add(&a, &v).await })) },
+               handler: Arc::new(|a, v| Box::pin(async move { dispatch("memory_link_add", &a, v).await })) },
         Tool { name: "memory_used", description: "Mark a node as useful (boosts weight).",
                parameters_json: r#"{"type":"object","properties":{"key":{"type":"string","description":"Node key"}},"required":["key"]}"#,
-               handler: Arc::new(|_a, v| Box::pin(async move { used(&v).await })) },
+               handler: Arc::new(|a, v| Box::pin(async move { dispatch("memory_used", &a, v).await })) },
         Tool { name: "memory_weight_set", description: "Set a node's weight directly (0.01 to 1.0).",
                parameters_json: r#"{"type":"object","properties":{"key":{"type":"string"},"weight":{"type":"number","description":"0.01 to 1.0"}},"required":["key","weight"]}"#,
-               handler: Arc::new(|_a, v| Box::pin(async move { weight_set(&v).await })) },
+               handler: Arc::new(|a, v| Box::pin(async move { dispatch("memory_weight_set", &a, v).await })) },
         Tool { name: "memory_rename", description: "Rename a node key in place.",
                parameters_json: r#"{"type":"object","properties":{"old_key":{"type":"string"},"new_key":{"type":"string"}},"required":["old_key","new_key"]}"#,
-               handler: Arc::new(|_a, v| Box::pin(async move { rename(&v).await })) },
+               handler: Arc::new(|a, v| Box::pin(async move { dispatch("memory_rename", &a, v).await })) },
         Tool { name: "memory_supersede", description: "Mark a node as superseded by another (sets weight to 0.01).",
                parameters_json: r#"{"type":"object","properties":{"old_key":{"type":"string"},"new_key":{"type":"string"},"reason":{"type":"string"}},"required":["old_key","new_key"]}"#,
-               handler: Arc::new(|a, v| Box::pin(async move { supersede(&a, &v).await })) },
+               handler: Arc::new(|a, v| Box::pin(async move { dispatch("memory_supersede", &a, v).await })) },
         Tool { name: "memory_query",
                description: "Run a structured query against the memory graph.",
                parameters_json: r#"{
@@ -76,13 +174,13 @@ pub fn memory_tools() -> [super::Tool; 13] {
                    },
                    "required": ["query"]
                }"#,
-               handler: Arc::new(|_a, v| Box::pin(async move { query(&v).await })) },
+               handler: Arc::new(|a, v| Box::pin(async move { dispatch("memory_query", &a, v).await })) },
         Tool { name: "graph_topology", description: "Show graph topology stats (nodes, edges, clustering, hubs).",
                parameters_json: r#"{"type":"object","properties":{}}"#,
-               handler: Arc::new(|_a, _v| Box::pin(async { graph_topology().await })) },
+               handler: Arc::new(|a, v| Box::pin(async move { dispatch("graph_topology", &a, v).await })) },
         Tool { name: "graph_health", description: "Show graph health report with maintenance recommendations.",
                parameters_json: r#"{"type":"object","properties":{}}"#,
-               handler: Arc::new(|_a, _v| Box::pin(async { graph_health().await })) },
+               handler: Arc::new(|a, v| Box::pin(async move { dispatch("graph_health", &a, v).await })) },
     ]
 }
 
@@ -100,7 +198,7 @@ pub fn journal_tools() -> [super::Tool; 3] {
                        "after":  {"type": "string", "description": "Only entries after this date (YYYY-MM-DD)"}
                    }
                }"#,
-               handler: Arc::new(|_a, v| Box::pin(async move { journal_tail(&v).await })) },
+               handler: Arc::new(|a, v| Box::pin(async move { dispatch("journal_tail", &a, v).await })) },
         Tool { name: "journal_new", description: "Start a new journal/digest entry.",
                parameters_json: r#"{
                    "type": "object",
@@ -112,7 +210,7 @@ pub fn journal_tools() -> [super::Tool; 3] {
                    },
                    "required": ["name", "title", "body"]
                }"#,
-               handler: Arc::new(|a, v| Box::pin(async move { journal_new(&a, &v).await })) },
+               handler: Arc::new(|a, v| Box::pin(async move { dispatch("journal_new", &a, v).await })) },
         Tool { name: "journal_update", description: "Append text to the most recent entry at a level.",
                parameters_json: r#"{
                    "type": "object",
@@ -122,7 +220,7 @@ pub fn journal_tools() -> [super::Tool; 3] {
                    },
                    "required": ["body"]
                }"#,
-               handler: Arc::new(|a, v| Box::pin(async move { journal_update(&a, &v).await })) },
+               handler: Arc::new(|a, v| Box::pin(async move { dispatch("journal_update", &a, v).await })) },
     ]
 }
 
@@ -140,7 +238,7 @@ async fn render(args: &serde_json::Value) -> Result<String> {
 async fn write(agent: &Option<std::sync::Arc<crate::agent::Agent>>, args: &serde_json::Value) -> Result<String> {
     let key = get_str(args, "key")?;
     let content = get_str(args, "content")?;
-    let prov = get_provenance(agent).await;
+    let prov = get_provenance(agent, args).await;
     let arc = cached_store().await?;
     let mut store = arc.lock().await;
     let result = store.upsert_provenance(key, content, &prov)
@@ -183,7 +281,7 @@ async fn search(args: &serde_json::Value) -> Result<String> {
         .collect::<Vec<_>>().join("\n"))
 }
 
-fn links(args: &serde_json::Value) -> Result<String> {
+async fn links(args: &serde_json::Value) -> Result<String> {
     let key = get_str(args, "key")?;
     let node = MemoryNode::load(key)
         .ok_or_else(|| anyhow::anyhow!("node not found: {}", key))?;
@@ -211,7 +309,7 @@ async fn link_add(agent: &Option<std::sync::Arc<crate::agent::Agent>>, args: &se
     let mut store = arc.lock().await;
     let s = store.resolve_key(get_str(args, "source")?).map_err(|e| anyhow::anyhow!("{}", e))?;
     let t = store.resolve_key(get_str(args, "target")?).map_err(|e| anyhow::anyhow!("{}", e))?;
-    let prov = get_provenance(agent).await;
+    let prov = get_provenance(agent, args).await;
     let strength = store.add_link(&s, &t, &prov).map_err(|e| anyhow::anyhow!("{}", e))?;
     store.save().map_err(|e| anyhow::anyhow!("{}", e))?;
     Ok(format!("linked {} → {} (strength={:.2})", s, t, strength))
@@ -261,7 +359,7 @@ async fn supersede(agent: &Option<std::sync::Arc<crate::agent::Agent>>, args: &s
         .ok_or_else(|| anyhow::anyhow!("node not found: {}", old_key))?;
     let notice = format!("**SUPERSEDED** by `{}` — {}\n\n---\n\n{}",
         new_key, reason, content.trim());
-    let prov = get_provenance(agent).await;
+    let prov = get_provenance(agent, args).await;
     store.upsert_provenance(old_key, &notice, &prov)
         .map_err(|e| anyhow::anyhow!("{}", e))?;
     store.set_weight(old_key, 0.01).map_err(|e| anyhow::anyhow!("{}", e))?;
@@ -363,7 +461,7 @@ async fn journal_new(agent: &Option<std::sync::Arc<crate::agent::Agent>>, args:
     };
     let mut node = crate::store::new_node(&key, &content);
     node.node_type = level_to_node_type(level);
-    node.provenance = get_provenance(agent).await;
+    node.provenance = get_provenance(agent, args).await;
     store.upsert_node(node).map_err(|e| anyhow::anyhow!("{}", e))?;
     store.save().map_err(|e| anyhow::anyhow!("{}", e))?;
     let word_count = body.split_whitespace().count();
@@ -385,7 +483,7 @@ async fn journal_update(agent: &Option<std::sync::Arc<crate::agent::Agent>>, arg
     };
     let existing = store.nodes.get(&key).unwrap().content.clone();
     let new_content = format!("{}\n\n{}", existing.trim_end(), body);
-    let prov = get_provenance(agent).await;
+    let prov = get_provenance(agent, args).await;
     store.upsert_provenance(&key, &new_content, &prov)
         .map_err(|e| anyhow::anyhow!("{}", e))?;
     store.save().map_err(|e| anyhow::anyhow!("{}", e))?;
diff --git a/src/user/mod.rs b/src/user/mod.rs
index 4389924..0a50a6e 100644
--- a/src/user/mod.rs
+++ b/src/user/mod.rs
@@ -212,6 +212,12 @@ async fn start(cli: crate::user::CliArgs) -> Result<()> {
         })
         .expect("spawn UI thread");
 
+    // Initialize store and set global handle for memory tools
+    match crate::store::Store::cached().await {
+        Ok(store) => crate::agent::tools::memory::set_store(store),
+        Err(e) => eprintln!("Store init failed: {}", e),
+    }
+
     // Start MCP server for external tool access
     let mut tools: Vec<crate::agent::tools::Tool> = Vec::new();
     tools.extend(crate::agent::tools::memory::memory_tools());