diff --git a/backend/app/discover/queries.py b/backend/app/discover/queries.py
index f83e6498..d0469a8a 100644
--- a/backend/app/discover/queries.py
+++ b/backend/app/discover/queries.py
@@ -77,7 +77,8 @@ _FEED_BASE: dict = {
 
 
 def _seeded(col, seed: int):
-    """The feed's deterministic shuffle expression, reused for Plex so one seed moves both halves."""
+    """The Home surprise's seeded order (md5 of the key and the seed), the same for Plex so one
+    seed moves both halves."""
     return func.md5(func.concat(col, str(seed)))
 
 
@@ -188,14 +189,9 @@ def _channel_affinity(db: Session, user: User) -> dict[str, float]:
     now = datetime.now(timezone.utc)
     scores: dict[str, float] = {}
     for channel_id, watched_at in rows:
-        age = (
-            (now - watched_at).total_seconds() / 86400 if watched_at else 2 * WATCHED_HALF_LIFE_DAYS
-        )
-        scores[channel_id] = scores.get(channel_id, 0.0) + 0.5 ** (
-            max(0.0, age) / WATCHED_HALF_LIFE_DAYS
-        )
-    top = max(scores.values(), default=0.0)
-    return {k: v / top for k, v in scores.items()} if top else {}
+        r = draw.recency(watched_at, now, WATCHED_HALF_LIFE_DAYS)
+        scores[channel_id] = scores.get(channel_id, 0.0) + r
+    return draw.scaled(scores)
 
 
 def yt_video_row(db: Session, user: User, video_id: str) -> dict | None:
diff --git a/backend/app/draw.py b/backend/app/draw.py
index 7281501d..5f4d850c 100644
--- a/backend/app/draw.py
+++ b/backend/app/draw.py
@@ -5,20 +5,24 @@ A title's chance to come first is its weight over the pool's (Efraimidis–Spira
 (`plex.affinity`, `discover.queries`), so a title nobody leans towards still comes up — only less
 often. Two things keep it a surprise rather than a ranking:
 
-- **u is the seed's md5 of the row's key**, the feed's shuffle idiom. With every weight 1 the order
-  is exactly the md5 order the draw had before it was weighted, so a user with no history sees the
-  old draw, and one seed still moves both sources of the Home hero together. A draw that is not
-  seeded (the Plex Discover rail) takes u from random().
+- **u is the seed's md5 of the row's key**, the Home surprise's seeded order. With every weight 1
+  the order is exactly that md5 order, so a user with no history sees the unweighted draw, and one
+  seed still moves both sources of the Home hero together. A draw that is not seeded (the Plex
+  Discover rail) takes u from random().
 - **One slot of three is blind** (`blend`): dealt from the unweighted order, so the same few
   favourites cannot fill the rail.
 
 The YouTube surprise draws over a window of the feed scope rather than all of it (`yt_surprise`):
 the window is read in SQL, and `shuffled` / `leaning` order it here with the same u.
+
+Both affinities weigh a watch by `recency` and score against the strongest with `scaled`, so the two
+sources lean by one rule.
 """
 
 import hashlib
 import math
 from collections.abc import Callable, Hashable
+from datetime import datetime
 from typing import Any
 
 from sqlalchemy import BigInteger, Float, cast, func, literal
@@ -29,6 +33,22 @@ from sqlalchemy.sql.elements import ColumnElement
 # 2**32: the first 8 hex digits of an md5 as a fraction of one.
 _SPAN = 4294967296.0
 
+# A watch with no date (an old import) counts as one this many half-lives ago.
+UNDATED_HALF_LIVES = 2
+
+
+def recency(watched_at: datetime | None, now: datetime, half_life_days: float) -> float:
+    """A watch's weight in an affinity: 1 now, half as much every `half_life_days`."""
+    if watched_at is None:
+        return 0.5**UNDATED_HALF_LIVES
+    return 0.5 ** (max(0.0, (now - watched_at).total_seconds() / 86400) / half_life_days)
+
+
+def scaled(scores: dict[str, float]) -> dict[str, float]:
+    """Each score over the strongest, so the strongest is 1; empty when nothing scored."""
+    top = max(scores.values(), default=0.0)
+    return {k: v / top for k, v in scores.items()} if top else {}
+
 
 def seeded_u(
     key: ColumnElement[Any] | InstrumentedAttribute[Any], seed: int
diff --git a/backend/app/plex/affinity.py b/backend/app/plex/affinity.py
index 4d25fbd3..656990d8 100644
--- a/backend/app/plex/affinity.py
+++ b/backend/app/plex/affinity.py
@@ -21,6 +21,7 @@ from sqlalchemy.dialects.postgresql import JSONB
 from sqlalchemy.orm import Session
 from sqlalchemy.sql.elements import ColumnElement
 
+from app import draw
 from app.plex.models import PlexItem, PlexShow, PlexState
 from app.userscope import owned_by
 
@@ -28,8 +29,6 @@ HALF_LIFE_DAYS = 180
 RECENT_TITLES = 200
 GENRE_WEIGHT = 2.0
 REC_WEIGHT = 3.0
-# A watch with no date (an old import) counts as one this many half-lives ago.
-_UNDATED_HALF_LIVES = 2
 
 
 @dataclass(frozen=True)
@@ -99,10 +98,7 @@ def for_user(db: Session, uid: int) -> Affinity:
     movie_recs: dict[str, float] = {}
     show_recs: dict[str, float] = {}
     for watched_at, item_genres, item_recs, show_genres, show_recs_json in rows:
-        if watched_at is None:
-            r = 0.5**_UNDATED_HALF_LIVES
-        else:
-            r = 0.5 ** (max(0.0, (now - watched_at).total_seconds() / 86400) / HALF_LIFE_DAYS)
+        r = draw.recency(watched_at, now, HALF_LIFE_DAYS)
         for g in (show_genres if show_genres is not None else item_genres) or []:
             genres[g] = genres.get(g, 0.0) + r
         for rec in (show_recs_json if show_recs_json is not None else item_recs) or []:
@@ -111,10 +107,4 @@ def for_user(db: Session, uid: int) -> Affinity:
             bucket = show_recs if rec.get("media_type") == "tv" else movie_recs
             guid = f"tmdb:{rec['tmdb_id']}"
             bucket[guid] = max(bucket.get(guid, 0.0), r)
-    return Affinity(_scaled(genres), _scaled(movie_recs), _scaled(show_recs))
-
-
-def _scaled(scores: dict[str, float]) -> dict[str, float]:
-    """Each score over the strongest, so the strongest is 1."""
-    top = max(scores.values(), default=0.0)
-    return {k: v / top for k, v in scores.items()} if top else {}
+    return Affinity(draw.scaled(genres), draw.scaled(movie_recs), draw.scaled(show_recs))
diff --git a/backend/tests/test_surprise_affinity.py b/backend/tests/test_surprise_affinity.py
index 0921c02c..3276c200 100644
--- a/backend/tests/test_surprise_affinity.py
+++ b/backend/tests/test_surprise_affinity.py
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ history the order is exactly the old one. DB lane.
 import hashlib
 from datetime import datetime, timedelta, timezone
 
-from sqlalchemy import text
+from sqlalchemy import select, text
 
 from app import draw
 from app.catalog.models import Channel, Subscription, Video
@@ -267,3 +267,69 @@ def test_the_discover_rail_leans_the_same_way(db, make_user):
     ]
     assert leads.count("comedy_new") > 0
     assert leads.count("horror_new") + leads.count("tipped_new") > 3 * leads.count("comedy_new")
+
+
+# ── whose history: only the user's own ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+
+def test_another_users_youtube_history_does_not_lean_my_draw(db, make_user):
+    watcher = _seed_yt(db, make_user, watched_in_fav=12)
+    me = make_user()
+    db.add_all(
+        [
+            Subscription(user_id=me.id, channel_id="UCfav"),
+            Subscription(user_id=me.id, channel_id="UCother"),
+        ]
+    )
+    db.commit()
+    assert queries._channel_affinity(db, watcher)
+    assert queries._channel_affinity(db, me) == {}
+
+
+def test_another_users_plex_history_does_not_lean_my_draw(db, make_user):
+    _seed_plex(db, make_user, history=True)
+    me = make_user()
+    assert not affinity.for_user(db, me.id)
+    keys = ["horror_new", "comedy_new", "tipped_new"] + [f"horror_seen{i}" for i in range(3)]
+    for s in range(12):
+        got = [c["id"] for c in queries.plex_surprise(db, me.id, "any", s, 6, lang="en")]
+        assert got == _md5_order(keys, s)
+
+
+# ── the rail: its blind slot, and a show's own recommendations ───────────────────────────────────
+
+
+def test_the_rails_third_slot_is_the_blind_draw(db, make_user, monkeypatch):
+    # The rail draws with random(), so the blend is watched rather than its odds: every leaning draw
+    # goes through it, with the blind order beside the weighted one and the third slot blind.
+    user, *_ = _seed_plex(db, make_user, history=True)
+    calls = []
+    real = draw.blend
+
+    def spy(weighted, blind, offset, n, key):
+        calls.append((offset, n, sorted(map(key, weighted)), sorted(map(key, blind))))
+        return real(weighted, blind, offset, n, key=key)
+
+    monkeypatch.setattr(draw, "blend", spy)
+    got = plex_discover.surprise(db, user, "movie", "en", 3, [], [], LibraryFilters())["items"]
+    assert calls and all(offset == 1 and n == 3 for offset, n, *_ in calls)
+    pool = sorted(["horror_new", "comedy_new", "tipped_new"])
+    assert calls[0][2] == pool and calls[0][3] == pool
+    assert len(got) == 3
+
+
+def test_a_show_leans_on_the_shows_recommended_not_the_films(db, make_user):
+    lib = PlexLibrary(plex_key="80", title="Shows", kind="show", enabled=True)
+    db.add(lib)
+    db.flush()
+    tipped = PlexShow(rating_key="tv1", library_id=lib.id, title="t", guid="tmdb:1", genres=[])
+    db.add(tipped)
+    db.commit()
+    shows = affinity.Affinity(show_recs={"tmdb:1": 1.0})
+    films = affinity.Affinity(movie_recs={"tmdb:1": 1.0})
+
+    def weight(aff):
+        return db.execute(select(aff.weight(PlexShow)).where(PlexShow.id == tipped.id)).scalar_one()
+
+    assert weight(shows) == 1 + affinity.REC_WEIGHT
+    assert weight(films) == 1