diff --git a/plugins/axiomcode/skills/axiomcode/scripts/ax_links.py b/plugins/axiomcode/skills/axiomcode/scripts/ax_links.py
index b5054a3a..cbbad69a 100644
--- a/plugins/axiomcode/skills/axiomcode/scripts/ax_links.py
+++ b/plugins/axiomcode/skills/axiomcode/scripts/ax_links.py
@@ -1119,7 +1119,9 @@ def site_arg(repo, s):
     m = re.fullmatch(r'(.+?):(\d+)(?::(\d+))?', s or '')
     if not m: return None, None, None
     f = m.group(1)
-    if os.path.isabs(f): f = os.path.relpath(os.path.realpath(f), repo)
+    if os.path.isabs(f):
+        try: f = os.path.relpath(os.path.realpath(f), repo)
+        except ValueError: pass                               # another drive (Windows): not in this repository, kept as given
     f = f[2:] if f.startswith('./') else f
     return f.replace(os.sep, '/'), int(m.group(2)), (int(m.group(3)) if m.group(3) else None)
 
diff --git a/plugins/axiomcode/skills/axiomcode/scripts/axiomcode-changed b/plugins/axiomcode/skills/axiomcode/scripts/axiomcode-changed
index c367928e..90640391 100755
--- a/plugins/axiomcode/skills/axiomcode/scripts/axiomcode-changed
+++ b/plugins/axiomcode/skills/axiomcode/scripts/axiomcode-changed
@@ -413,7 +413,8 @@ class Changed:
         out.sort(); return out
     def rel(self, f):
         f = os.path.realpath(f) if os.path.exists(f) else f
-        r = os.path.relpath(f, self.repo) if os.path.isabs(f) else f
+        try: r = os.path.relpath(f, self.repo) if os.path.isabs(f) else f
+        except ValueError: r = f                              # another drive (Windows): outside the repository, kept as given
         return r.replace(os.sep, '/')
     # ── the two texts of a file ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
     def texts(self, rel, mode, rng):
diff --git a/plugins/axiomcode/skills/axiomcode/scripts/axiomcode-graph b/plugins/axiomcode/skills/axiomcode/scripts/axiomcode-graph
index 6ad4f249..59aa8c2e 100755
--- a/plugins/axiomcode/skills/axiomcode/scripts/axiomcode-graph
+++ b/plugins/axiomcode/skills/axiomcode/scripts/axiomcode-graph
@@ -91,7 +91,9 @@ def export(repo, page=None, how=''):
         def rel(p, src=src):
             a = p if os.path.isabs(p) else os.path.join(src, p)
             a = os.path.realpath(a) if os.path.exists(a) else os.path.normpath(a)
-            r = os.path.relpath(a, repo).replace(os.sep, '/'); return p.lstrip('/') if r.startswith('..') else r
+            try: r = os.path.relpath(a, repo).replace(os.sep, '/')
+            except ValueError: r = '..'                       # another drive (Windows): outside, as axiomcode-index reads it
+            return p.replace(os.sep, '/').lstrip('/') if r.startswith('..') else r
 
         # ── declarations: types and methods, with the display names the query skill uses when the index is there ──
         owners.update({r['id']: r['owner_type_id'] for r in q("SELECT id, owner_type_id FROM methods WHERE provenance='client'")})
diff --git a/plugins/axiomcode/skills/axiomcode/scripts/axiomcode-index b/plugins/axiomcode/skills/axiomcode/scripts/axiomcode-index
index 9add01cd..8d260cab 100755
--- a/plugins/axiomcode/skills/axiomcode/scripts/axiomcode-index
+++ b/plugins/axiomcode/skills/axiomcode/scripts/axiomcode-index
@@ -54,8 +54,12 @@ def rel(p):
     if not p: return p
     a = p if os.path.isabs(p) else os.path.join(SRC, p)
     a = os.path.realpath(a) if os.path.exists(a) else os.path.normpath(a)
-    r = os.path.relpath(a, REPO).replace(os.sep, '/')   # '/' on every platform: every reader splits on it
-    return p.lstrip('/') if r.startswith('..') else r
+    # ON ANOTHER DRIVE (Windows) a path has no form relative to the repository: relpath raised, and a --library whose
+    # compiled IR sits in the user cache on C: while the repository is on D: failed the whole index. It is outside the
+    # repository, as a `..` path is, and is kept as written.
+    try: r = os.path.relpath(a, REPO).replace(os.sep, '/')   # '/' on every platform: every reader splits on it
+    except ValueError: r = '..'
+    return p.replace(os.sep, '/').lstrip('/') if r.startswith('..') else r
 # never DEGRADE: an index built from the IR must not be rebuilt without it (the intermediates are routinely cleaned
 # to save disk). If only newer tables are missing, add them empty and keep everything else.
 prev = {r[0]: r[1] for r in c.execute("SELECT key, value FROM index_meta")} if c.execute("SELECT 1 FROM sqlite_master WHERE name='index_meta'").fetchone() else {}
diff --git a/tests/no_exec.py b/tests/no_exec.py
index 6c7e18f6..e227f3ea 100644
--- a/tests/no_exec.py
+++ b/tests/no_exec.py
@@ -79,7 +79,7 @@ def main():
         open(os.path.join(site, 'sitecustomize.py'), 'w').write(WINDOWS_EXEC % SCRIPTS)
         plain = dict(os.environ)
         win = dict(plain, PYTHONPATH=site + os.pathsep + os.environ.get('PYTHONPATH', ''))
-        ax = ['bash', os.path.join(SCRIPTS, 'axiomcode')]
+        ax = [os.environ.get('AXIOMCODE_BASH') or 'bash', os.path.join(SCRIPTS, 'axiomcode')]   # Windows: a bare `bash` is WSL's
         checks = [  # (why, argv, what the answer holds, exit status 0?)
             ('impact answers', ax + ['impact', 'Rates.rate', repo], 'Quote.total', True),
             ('impact --json answers', ax + ['impact', 'Rates.rate', repo, '--json'], '"Quote.total', True),