diff --git a/hive-runtime/src/acp/mod.rs b/hive-runtime/src/acp/mod.rs
index fbe29b88..49cce1f8 100644
--- a/hive-runtime/src/acp/mod.rs
+++ b/hive-runtime/src/acp/mod.rs
@@ -100,7 +100,8 @@ pub struct AcpRuntime {
 struct Live {
     conn: Connection,
     load_session: bool,
-    session: Option<String>,
+    /// The recorded session, or a new one whose first prompt is unanswered.
+    loaded: Option<String>,
     model: Option<String>,
 }
 
@@ -117,6 +118,14 @@ impl AcpRuntime {
         }
     }
 
+    /// Names a new session until its first prompt has been answered, so a
+    /// failed first prompt is retried on the same session.
+    fn pending_file(&self) -> PathBuf {
+        let mut path = self.session_file.clone().into_os_string();
+        path.push(".pending");
+        PathBuf::from(path)
+    }
+
     async fn start(&self, config: &Config) -> Result<Live> {
         let (_, servers) = mcp_servers(config)?;
         let cwd = session_cwd(config);
@@ -142,43 +151,47 @@ impl AcpRuntime {
         Ok(Live {
             conn,
             load_session: caps["loadSession"] == Value::Bool(true),
-            session: None,
+            loaded: None,
             model: None,
         })
     }
 
-    /// Attach the durable session: the one already loaded, else the one named
-    /// by the session file, else a new one. Returns its id and whether it is
-    /// new. A new session is not recorded here: [`Self::turn`] records it once
-    /// its first prompt, the one carrying the system prompt, has been answered.
+    /// Attach the durable session: the recorded one (named by the session
+    /// file), else a new one whose first prompt was never answered (named by
+    /// the pending file), else a new one. Returns its id and whether its first
+    /// prompt, the one carrying the system prompt, is still to be answered;
+    /// [`Self::turn`] records the session once it has been.
     async fn attach(
         &self,
         live: &mut Live,
         cwd: &Path,
         servers: &[Value],
     ) -> Result<(String, bool)> {
-        let persisted = std::fs::read_to_string(&self.session_file)
-            .ok()
-            .map(|s| s.trim().to_owned())
-            .filter(|s| !s.is_empty());
-        if let Some(id) = persisted {
-            if live.session.as_deref() == Some(id.as_str()) {
-                return Ok((id, false));
+        let known = [
+            (read_id(&self.session_file), false),
+            (read_id(&self.pending_file()), true),
+        ]
+        .into_iter()
+        .filter_map(|(id, new)| Some((id?, new)));
+        for (id, new) in known {
+            if live.loaded.as_deref() == Some(id.as_str()) {
+                return Ok((id, new));
             }
-            if live.load_session {
-                let params = json!({ "sessionId": id, "cwd": cwd, "mcpServers": servers });
-                match live.conn.request("session/load", params).await {
-                    Ok(response) => {
-                        discard_stale(&mut live.conn)?;
-                        live.model = stream::session_model(&response);
-                        live.session = Some(id.clone());
-                        return Ok((id, false));
-                    }
-                    Err(e @ AcpError::Rpc { .. }) => {
-                        tracing::warn!(error = %e, "ACP session/load failed; starting a new session");
-                    }
-                    Err(e) => return Err(e.into()),
+            if !live.load_session {
+                continue;
+            }
+            let params = json!({ "sessionId": id, "cwd": cwd, "mcpServers": servers });
+            match live.conn.request("session/load", params).await {
+                Ok(response) => {
+                    discard_stale(&mut live.conn)?;
+                    live.model = stream::session_model(&response);
+                    live.loaded = Some(id.clone());
+                    return Ok((id, new));
                 }
+                Err(e @ AcpError::Rpc { .. }) => {
+                    tracing::warn!(error = %e, session = %id, "ACP session/load failed");
+                }
+                Err(e) => return Err(e.into()),
             }
         }
         let params = json!({ "cwd": cwd, "mcpServers": servers });
@@ -191,15 +204,14 @@ impl AcpRuntime {
             })?
             .to_owned();
         live.model = stream::session_model(&response);
+        live.loaded = Some(id.clone());
+        write_id(&self.pending_file(), &id)?;
         Ok((id, true))
     }
 
     fn record_session(&self, id: &str) -> std::result::Result<(), AcpError> {
-        if let Some(dir) = self.session_file.parent() {
-            std::fs::create_dir_all(dir)?;
-        }
-        std::fs::write(&self.session_file, id)?;
-        Ok(())
+        write_id(&self.session_file, id)?;
+        remove_if_present(&self.pending_file())
     }
 
     async fn turn(
@@ -245,7 +257,6 @@ impl AcpRuntime {
         if created {
             self.record_session(&session)?;
         }
-        live.session = Some(session.clone());
         // Updates may still arrive after the reply: an agent can forward its
         // stream asynchronously. Take them until the agent goes quiet.
         let settled = tokio::time::Instant::now() + SETTLE_MAX;
@@ -308,8 +319,10 @@ impl Runtime for AcpRuntime {
     }
 
     /// Moves the session file aside; the agent keeps its own copy of the
-    /// session, so nothing is lost.
+    /// session, so nothing is lost. A new session whose first prompt was never
+    /// answered is dropped too.
     fn archive(&self) -> Result<Option<PathBuf>> {
+        remove_if_present(&self.pending_file()).map_err(Error::Acp)?;
         if !self.session_file.exists() {
             return Ok(None);
         }
@@ -370,6 +383,28 @@ fn discard_stale(conn: &mut Connection) -> std::result::Result<(), AcpError> {
     Ok(())
 }
 
+fn read_id(file: &Path) -> Option<String> {
+    std::fs::read_to_string(file)
+        .ok()
+        .map(|s| s.trim().to_owned())
+        .filter(|s| !s.is_empty())
+}
+
+fn write_id(file: &Path, id: &str) -> std::result::Result<(), AcpError> {
+    if let Some(dir) = file.parent() {
+        std::fs::create_dir_all(dir)?;
+    }
+    std::fs::write(file, id)?;
+    Ok(())
+}
+
+fn remove_if_present(file: &Path) -> std::result::Result<(), AcpError> {
+    match std::fs::remove_file(file) {
+        Err(e) if e.kind() != std::io::ErrorKind::NotFound => Err(e.into()),
+        _ => Ok(()),
+    }
+}
+
 fn session_cwd(config: &Config) -> PathBuf {
     config
         .cwd
@@ -402,34 +437,45 @@ mod tests {
     use super::{AcpError, AcpRuntime};
     use crate::{AcpCommand, Error, Runtime};
 
-    /// An ACP agent in plain `sh`: answers `initialize`, numbers its sessions
-    /// `s1`, `s2`, …, appends every `session/prompt` line to the file named by
-    /// its argument, and fails the first prompt it is sent.
+    /// An ACP agent in plain `sh`. It answers `initialize`, numbers its
+    /// sessions `s1`, `s2`, …, appends every method it is sent to
+    /// `<log>.methods` (and `start` when it starts), and every
+    /// `session/prompt` line to `<log>`. It answers every prompt with
+    /// `end_turn`, except the very first one it is sent across restarts,
+    /// which it handles per its mode:
+    ///
+    /// - `fail`: an error.
     const AGENT: &str = r#"
 n=0
+printf 'start\n' >> "$1.methods"
 while IFS= read -r line; do
   id=${line#*\"id\":}; id=${id%%[,\}]*}
-  case $line in
-    *'"method":"initialize"'*)
+  m=${line#*\"method\":\"}; m=${m%%\"*}
+  printf '%s\n' "$m" >> "$1.methods"
+  case $m in
+    initialize)
       printf '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":%s,"result":{"protocolVersion":1,"agentCapabilities":{"loadSession":true,"mcpCapabilities":{"http":true}}}}\n' "$id" ;;
-    *'"method":"session/new"'*)
+    session/new)
       n=$((n+1))
       printf '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":%s,"result":{"sessionId":"s%s"}}\n' "$id" "$n" ;;
-    *'"method":"session/load"'*)
+    session/load)
       printf '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":%s,"result":{}}\n' "$id" ;;
-    *'"method":"session/prompt"'*)
+    session/prompt)
       printf '%s\n' "$line" >> "$1"
-      if [ -e "$1.failed" ]; then
+      if [ -e "$1.once" ]; then
         printf '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":%s,"result":{"stopReason":"end_turn"}}\n' "$id"
       else
-        : > "$1.failed"
-        printf '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":%s,"error":{"code":-32603,"message":"provider down"}}\n' "$id"
+        : > "$1.once"
+        case $2 in
+          fail)
+            printf '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":%s,"error":{"code":-32603,"message":"provider down"}}\n' "$id" ;;
+        esac
       fi ;;
   esac
 done
 "#;
 
-    fn runtime(dir: &Path) -> AcpRuntime {
+    fn runtime(dir: &Path, mode: &str) -> AcpRuntime {
         let script = dir.join("agent.sh");
         std::fs::write(&script, AGENT).unwrap();
         let command = AcpCommand {
@@ -437,6 +483,7 @@ done
             args: vec![
                 script.display().to_string(),
                 dir.join("prompts").display().to_string(),
+                mode.to_owned(),
             ],
             env: BTreeMap::new(),
         };
@@ -461,10 +508,23 @@ done
             .collect()
     }
 
+    /// How often the agent started, or was sent `method`.
+    fn count(dir: &Path, method: &str) -> usize {
+        std::fs::read_to_string(dir.join("prompts.methods"))
+            .unwrap()
+            .lines()
+            .filter(|line| *line == method)
+            .count()
+    }
+
+    fn recorded(dir: &Path) -> String {
+        std::fs::read_to_string(dir.join("session")).unwrap()
+    }
+
     #[tokio::test]
-    async fn a_session_whose_first_prompt_failed_is_not_resumed() {
+    async fn a_session_whose_first_prompt_failed_is_retried_not_resumed() {
         let dir = tempfile::tempdir().unwrap();
-        let (runtime, config) = (runtime(dir.path()), config(dir.path()));
+        let (runtime, config) = (runtime(dir.path(), "fail"), config(dir.path()));
 
         let failed = runtime.run(&config, "one", &NoopSink).await;
         assert!(
@@ -479,25 +539,28 @@ done
         assert!(!next.created);
 
         assert_eq!(carried_system_prompt(dir.path()), [true, true, false]);
-        assert_eq!(
-            std::fs::read_to_string(dir.path().join("session")).unwrap(),
-            "s2"
-        );
+        assert_eq!(recorded(dir.path()), "s1");
+        assert_eq!(count(dir.path(), "session/new"), 1);
+        assert!(!dir.path().join("session.pending").exists());
     }
 
     #[tokio::test]
-    async fn after_a_restart_a_session_whose_first_prompt_failed_is_not_loaded() {
+    async fn after_a_restart_a_session_whose_first_prompt_failed_is_retried() {
         let dir = tempfile::tempdir().unwrap();
         let config = config(dir.path());
 
-        let before = runtime(dir.path());
+        let before = runtime(dir.path(), "fail");
         assert!(before.run(&config, "one", &NoopSink).await.is_err());
         drop(before);
 
-        let after = runtime(dir.path());
+        let after = runtime(dir.path(), "fail");
         let retried = after.run(&config, "two", &NoopSink).await.unwrap();
         assert!(retried.created);
 
         assert_eq!(carried_system_prompt(dir.path()), [true, true]);
+        assert_eq!(count(dir.path(), "start"), 2);
+        assert_eq!(count(dir.path(), "session/new"), 1);
+        assert_eq!(count(dir.path(), "session/load"), 1);
+        assert_eq!(recorded(dir.path()), "s1");
     }
 }