diff --git a/packages/paperclip-runner/src/drivers/acpx/runtime-host.test.ts b/packages/paperclip-runner/src/drivers/acpx/runtime-host.test.ts
index 970786fb199..dd16a6f1890 100644
--- a/packages/paperclip-runner/src/drivers/acpx/runtime-host.test.ts
+++ b/packages/paperclip-runner/src/drivers/acpx/runtime-host.test.ts
@@ -264,7 +264,7 @@ describe("ACPX runtime host", () => {
     } finally { await nextOwner.close({ reason: "next owner complete" }); }
   });
 
-  it("keeps the Claude lifetime lease until an owned settings write settles after cancellation", async () => {
+  it.each([false, true])("cancels Claude startup promptly while retaining its settings write and lease (late failure: %s)", async failWrite => {
     const fixture = await hostFixture();
     const controller = new AbortController();
     let announceWrite!: () => void;
@@ -280,6 +280,7 @@ describe("ACPX runtime host", () => {
       return { ...sandbox, initializeOwnedConfiguration: async () => {
         announceWrite();
         await writePending;
+        if (failWrite) throw new Error("settings write failed after cancellation");
         await initialize?.();
       } };
     };
@@ -289,6 +290,8 @@ describe("ACPX runtime host", () => {
     try {
       await writeStarted;
       controller.abort(new Error("settings admission cancelled"));
+      await runAcpxOperationAttempt(() => rejected, Date.now() + 1_000);
+      expect(openRuntime).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
       await expect(AcpxRuntimeHost.open(options, fixture.dependencies({ openRuntime }))).rejects.toThrow("already has an active lease");
     } finally { finishWrite(); }
     await rejected;
diff --git a/packages/paperclip-runner/src/drivers/acpx/runtime-host.ts b/packages/paperclip-runner/src/drivers/acpx/runtime-host.ts
index fe353e6a6f7..6280645ab2a 100644
--- a/packages/paperclip-runner/src/drivers/acpx/runtime-host.ts
+++ b/packages/paperclip-runner/src/drivers/acpx/runtime-host.ts
@@ -483,7 +483,19 @@ export class AcpxRuntimeHost {
         });
       }
       options.signal?.throwIfAborted();
-      await sandbox.initializeOwnedConfiguration?.();
+      const configurationLifetime = credential;
+      await runAbortableAdmissionStage(
+        options.signal,
+        async () => { await sandbox.initializeOwnedConfiguration?.(); },
+        cleanup => {
+          pendingRuntimeOwnsCredential = true;
+          const retained = cleanup.then(() => cleanupAbortedRuntimeAdmission(
+            null, configurationLifetime, "ACPX owned configuration cancelled",
+          ));
+          retainRuntimeHostCleanup(retained);
+          dependencies.retainAdmissionCleanup?.(retained);
+        },
+      );
       options.signal?.throwIfAborted();
       assertAcpxProfileEnvironment(options.agent, sandbox.launchEnvironment);
       let launchEnvironment = sandbox.launchEnvironment;
diff --git a/tests/runner-e2e/pi-controls-evidence.test.ts b/tests/runner-e2e/pi-controls-evidence.test.ts
index ba9e0959d23..af9d64b0b55 100644
--- a/tests/runner-e2e/pi-controls-evidence.test.ts
+++ b/tests/runner-e2e/pi-controls-evidence.test.ts
@@ -189,8 +189,8 @@ describe("Pi controls catalog admission", () => {
     // Extended v3 states the strict file oracle's task-wide Bash limit.
     const pi = runnerMatrix.find(c => c.profile.qualificationCandidate === "pi")!.profile;
     expect(pi.modelQualification?.qualificationId).toBe("pi:0.0.33:1.0.0:openrouter");
-    expect(runnerSuites.find(s => s.id === "pi-native")!.definitionMetadata).toMatchObject({ version: 23, remoteProcExit: "separately-confirmed-absence-after-read-failure", taskCreation: "explicit-title-and-creation-response-id", agentMemoryParent: "public-managed-file-seed-before-admission", incompleteTerminalCleanup: "retirement-retained-with-failed-watch", profileVersion: 23, agentMemoryContent: "utf8-nonce-plus-final-lf", agentMemoryPrompt: "single-json-write-and-content-bound-native-read-both-runs", agentMemoryReadAuthority: "local-withheld-or-exact-remote-agent-run-file", taskPromptTransport: "fenced-markdown-paste-and-multiline-literal-escapes", nativeFinish: "current-contract-objective-evidence-refs", providerFaultExecutable: "stable-preinstalled-runner-link-and-snapshot-node-inode-with-held-bootstrap-fd-3-or-7" });
-    expect(runnerSuites.find(s => s.id === "pi-controls")!.definitionMetadata).toMatchObject({ version: 10, remoteProcExit: "separately-confirmed-absence-after-read-failure", taskCreation: "explicit-title-and-creation-response-id", profileVersion: 23,
+    expect(runnerSuites.find(s => s.id === "pi-native")!.definitionMetadata).toMatchObject({ version: 23, remoteProcExit: "separately-confirmed-absence-after-read-failure", taskCreation: "explicit-title-and-creation-response-id", agentMemoryParent: "public-managed-file-seed-before-admission", incompleteTerminalCleanup: "retirement-retained-with-failed-watch", profileVersion: 25, agentMemoryContent: "utf8-nonce-plus-final-lf", agentMemoryPrompt: "single-json-write-and-content-bound-native-read-both-runs", agentMemoryReadAuthority: "local-withheld-or-exact-remote-agent-run-file", taskPromptTransport: "fenced-markdown-paste-and-multiline-literal-escapes", nativeFinish: "current-contract-objective-evidence-refs", providerFaultExecutable: "stable-preinstalled-runner-link-and-snapshot-node-inode-with-held-bootstrap-fd-3-or-7" });
+    expect(runnerSuites.find(s => s.id === "pi-controls")!.definitionMetadata).toMatchObject({ version: 10, remoteProcExit: "separately-confirmed-absence-after-read-failure", taskCreation: "explicit-title-and-creation-response-id", profileVersion: 25,
       remoteProcessIdentity: "observer-pid-startTicks-bootId",
       controlPlaneSettlement: "required-scoped-result-and-terminal-after-runner" });
     expect(runnerSuites.find(s => s.id === "extended-harnesses")!.definitionMetadata).toMatchObject({ version: 5, piFileArtifactTitle: "exact-filename", piFileCommandTransport: "fenced-bash-markdown-paste" });
@@ -200,7 +200,7 @@ describe("Pi controls catalog admission", () => {
     }
     const hashes = Object.fromEntries(runnerSuites.filter(s => ["pi-native", "native-active-stop", "extended-harnesses", "rich-acp-warm-continuity"].includes(s.id)).map(s => [s.id, suiteDefinitionHash(s)]));
     expect(hashes).toEqual({
-      "pi-native": "3c77ced7edfb99aa12052f451398da7580466a54abadcaf287d31ee12c16382d",
+      "pi-native": "fca73103d5791b9babe5b51cdbb38629c7b30732687969f4714f8af133803df9",
       "native-active-stop": "2d4fdeeb75bd531b309bd1b35cfa5680ceefdeee6b7155b068dd011ce9901980",
       "rich-acp-warm-continuity": "331b88d9538a132670789fb7864df7df5f4bf294ae19b62f53d8a02f901774f0",
       "extended-harnesses": "5de4fac78d4d581bc0954f07b5cf2df2862d37f8b0205325eede6d9ef6d9f5e6",