diff --git a/packages/session-query/tool-session-query/src/index.ts b/packages/session-query/tool-session-query/src/index.ts
index c8c7350604..02b6d2ceb8 100644
--- a/packages/session-query/tool-session-query/src/index.ts
+++ b/packages/session-query/tool-session-query/src/index.ts
@@ -658,13 +658,10 @@ async function collectPages<T>(
     signal.throwIfAborted()
     for (const item of page.items) {
       if (!accept(item)) continue
-      items.push(item)
       if (items.length === maxResults) {
-        return {
-          items,
-          capped: page.nextCursor !== undefined || item !== page.items.at(-1),
-        }
+        return { items, capped: true }
       }
+      items.push(item)
     }
     if (page.nextCursor === undefined) return { items, capped: false }
     if (seen.has(page.nextCursor)) {
diff --git a/packages/session-query/tool-session-query/tests/tool-session-query.spec.ts b/packages/session-query/tool-session-query/tests/tool-session-query.spec.ts
index 60136d4f83..017070eefc 100644
--- a/packages/session-query/tool-session-query/tests/tool-session-query.spec.ts
+++ b/packages/session-query/tool-session-query/tests/tool-session-query.spec.ts
@@ -506,8 +506,10 @@ describe('search paging, prior-history bounds, titles, and cancellation', () =>
         })
       }
       return Promise.resolve({
-        items: [sessionHit('b', '/work', 'second')],
-        nextCursor: SessionSearchCursor('more'),
+        items: [
+          sessionHit('b', '/work', 'second'),
+          sessionHit('additional-authorized', '/work', 'third'),
+        ],
       })
     }
 
@@ -523,6 +525,27 @@ describe('search paging, prior-history bounds, titles, and cancellation', () =>
     expect(output).toContain('Result cap reached')
   })
 
+  it('does not report a cap when only rejected hits remain after the authorized limit', async () => {
+    const mounted = await mount({ maxSearchResults: 1 })
+    const cursor = SessionSearchCursor('rejected-tail')
+    FakeQuery.sessionSearch = request => request.cursor === undefined
+      ? Promise.resolve({
+        items: [sessionHit('authorized', '/work')],
+        nextCursor: cursor,
+      })
+      : Promise.resolve({
+        items: [
+          sessionHit(mounted.caller.id, '/work'),
+          sessionHit('outside', '/outside'),
+        ],
+      })
+
+    const output = text(await mounted.call('session_search', { query: 'needle' }))
+    expect(FakeQuery.sessionRequests.map(request => request.cursor)).toEqual([undefined, cursor])
+    expect(output).toContain('Session authorized')
+    expect(output).not.toContain('Result cap reached')
+  })
+
   it('preserves stale-cursor diagnostics without transparently restarting', async () => {
     const mounted = await mount({ maxSearchResults: 2 })
     const cursor = SessionSearchCursor('stale-next')
diff --git a/packages/support/acp-snapshot/src/normalize.ts b/packages/support/acp-snapshot/src/normalize.ts
index a4cd595b12..258de0fd53 100644
--- a/packages/support/acp-snapshot/src/normalize.ts
+++ b/packages/support/acp-snapshot/src/normalize.ts
@@ -19,6 +19,8 @@ const CWD_ROOTED_PATH_RE = /\{\{cwd\}\}(?:[\\/][^\s<>"'`]+)+/g
 const PATH_TAG_RE = /(<path>)([^<]*)(<\/path>)/g
 const ADDITIONAL_INSTRUCTIONS_PATH_RE = /(Additional instructions from: )([^\r\n]+)/g
 const EMBEDDED_EVENT_TIME_RE = /("time": )\d+(?=,\r?\n)/g
+const EVENT_READ_RESULT_RE
+  = /^Session [^\r\n]+ — [^\r\n]+\r?\nTarget event seq \d+:\r?\n```json\r?\n\{\r?\n/
 
 /** A UUID v4 string, the shape `randomUUID()` produces for session ids. */
 const UUID_RE = /[0-9a-f]{8}-[0-9a-f]{4}-[0-9a-f]{4}-[0-9a-f]{4}-[0-9a-f]{12}/gi
@@ -74,9 +76,12 @@ function scrubString(value: string, ctx: NormalizeContext, cwdPathMode: CwdPathM
   }
   out = out.replace(LOCAL_SPILL_PATH_RE, (_match, name: string) => `{{spillLocator:${name}}}`)
   out = out.replace(SNAPSHOT_SPILL_PATH_RE, (_match, name: string) => `{{spillLocator:${name}}}`)
-  // Exact event-read tools render pretty JSON inside a text block. The event's
-  // wall-clock time is volatile even though its seq and payload are deterministic.
-  out = out.replace(EMBEDDED_EVENT_TIME_RE, `$1${EVENT_TIME}`)
+  // Exact event-read results render pretty JSON inside a distinctive text
+  // envelope. Restrict time scrubbing to that envelope so JSON printed by
+  // models, bash, or unrelated tools remains regression-visible.
+  if (EVENT_READ_RESULT_RE.test(out)) {
+    out = out.replace(EMBEDDED_EVENT_TIME_RE, `$1${EVENT_TIME}`)
+  }
   for (const id of ctx.sessionIds) out = out.split(id).join(SESSION_ID)
   out = out.replace(UUID_RE, SESSION_ID)
   return out
diff --git a/packages/support/acp-snapshot/tests/normalize.spec.ts b/packages/support/acp-snapshot/tests/normalize.spec.ts
index b74dd49e49..b4bc813cda 100644
--- a/packages/support/acp-snapshot/tests/normalize.spec.ts
+++ b/packages/support/acp-snapshot/tests/normalize.spec.ts
@@ -134,7 +134,7 @@ Additional instructions from: nested\AGENTS.md`,
             type: 'content',
             content: {
               type: 'text',
-              text: 'Target event:\n```json\n{\n  "seq": 4,\n  "time": 1784876275593,\n  "data": {}\n}\n```',
+              text: 'Session prior — title\nTarget event seq 4:\n```json\n{\n  "seq": 4,\n  "time": 1784876275593,\n  "data": {}\n}\n```',
             },
           }],
         },
@@ -145,6 +145,28 @@ Additional instructions from: nested\AGENTS.md`,
     expect(out).not.toContain('1784876275593')
   })
 
+  it('preserves event-like timestamps in unrelated output text', () => {
+    const raw = JSON.stringify({
+      jsonrpc: '2.0',
+      method: 'session/update',
+      params: {
+        update: {
+          sessionUpdate: 'tool_call_update',
+          content: [{
+            type: 'content',
+            content: {
+              type: 'text',
+              text: 'bash output:\n```json\n{\n  "time": 1784876275593,\n  "data": {}\n}\n```',
+            },
+          }],
+        },
+      },
+    })
+    const out = normalizeStdout(raw, ctx)
+    expect(out).toContain('1784876275593')
+    expect(out).not.toContain('{{eventTime}}')
+  })
+
   it('throws on a non-JSON stdout line (the purity check)', () => {
     const raw = `${JSON.stringify({ jsonrpc: '2.0', id: 1 })}\noops a log leaked\n`
     expect(() => normalizeStdout(raw, ctx)).toThrow()