diff --git a/src/js/26-docs-account.js b/src/js/26-docs-account.js
index 165c5908..54d63b1d 100644
--- a/src/js/26-docs-account.js
+++ b/src/js/26-docs-account.js
@@ -43,7 +43,11 @@
   }
 
   function returnTo () {
-    return encodeURIComponent(window.location.pathname + window.location.search)
+    // Include the hash: without it, a user reading a specific #section-anchor
+    // who signs in gets bounced back to the top of the page instead of where
+    // they were. docs-site's safeReturnTo() already accepts a path+query+hash
+    // string as-is (it only checks scheme/shape, not content).
+    return encodeURIComponent(window.location.pathname + window.location.search + window.location.hash)
   }
 
   // Feature modal shown before sending the user to /login.
@@ -285,13 +289,16 @@
       state_mismatch: 'Your sign-in link expired. Please try again.',
       // Auth0 access_denied: the account isn't a member of a required Redpanda
       // Cloud organization (or declined consent). Retrying the same account won't
-      // help, so say why instead of a generic "try again" loop.
-      access_denied: 'Your account is not in a Redpanda Cloud organization yet. Click the verification link in your email, or ask your organization admin to invite you.',
-      // Signed up but never clicked the verification link Redpanda Cloud emailed.
-      // Kept in sync with LOGIN_ERROR_MESSAGES in docs-site docs-login.mjs: without
-      // an entry here this code fell through to the generic "try again" default,
-      // which is the one thing that cannot work until the address is verified.
-      org_setup_incomplete: 'Click the verification link Redpanda Cloud emailed you, then sign in again.',
+      // help, so say why instead of a generic "try again" loop. Verifying an
+      // emailed address does not create an organization -- only finishing Cloud's
+      // own onboarding does -- so this doesn't point at the inbox.
+      access_denied: 'Your account is not in a Redpanda Cloud organization yet. Ask your organization admin to invite you, or finish setting up your account on Redpanda Cloud.',
+      // Account has no Redpanda Cloud organization yet. Kept in sync with
+      // LOGIN_ERROR_MESSAGES.org_setup_incomplete in docs-site docs-login.mjs:
+      // verifying the emailed address does NOT create an organization (that only
+      // happens inside Cloud's own onboarding wizard), so retrying sign-in fails
+      // identically every time until account setup is actually finished on Cloud.
+      org_setup_incomplete: 'Finish creating your account on Redpanda Cloud, then come back and sign in.',
     }
     var toast = document.createElement('div')
     toast.setAttribute('role', 'alert')
diff --git a/src/partials/header-content.hbs b/src/partials/header-content.hbs
index 36acad1d..1eb2f7b6 100644
--- a/src/partials/header-content.hbs
+++ b/src/partials/header-content.hbs
@@ -169,6 +169,16 @@
                 </li>
               </ul>
               <a class="tb-signin-modal-cta" data-signin-modal-continue href="/login">Continue</a>
+              {{!-- Reverted 2026-08-26: registering via Auth0's native screen_hint=signup
+                    (instead of Cloud's cloud.redpanda.com/sign-up wizard) skips org
+                    provisioning entirely -- the docs Auth0 client requires org
+                    membership, so an Auth0-native signup produces a permanently
+                    org-less account (login_error=org_setup_incomplete forever;
+                    verifying the email does not fix it, since org creation only
+                    happens inside Cloud's own onboarding). Team decision was to keep
+                    routing "Create a free account" through Cloud's real wizard and
+                    instead skip the WASTED WELCOME CLUSTER for docs-tagged signups on
+                    the Cloud side (see cloudv2 signUpSource/backoffice-worker work). --}}
               <p class="tb-signin-modal-foot">No account yet? <a href="https://cloud.redpanda.com/sign-up?utm_source=docs&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=docs-signup&utm_content=signin-modal" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Create a free account</a></p>
               {{!-- Privacy disclosure. The modal CTA links to /login?disclosed=1,
                     which docs-login.mjs uses to SKIP the server interstitial, so