Everyone stepped forward in turn to sign.
Once the dust had settled, Tony looked at the revised Wakanda Accords in his hands, marveling inwardly.
They had both signed, but all he had thought about was how to play along without truly complying.
His plan had been to sign the accords first, placate the authorities, and preserve the Avengers' legal status.
Then he would assemble an elite team of lawyers to hunt for loopholes in the fine print, using Stark Industries' resources to slowly negotiate with the politicians within the rules and fight for autonomy.
Though the accords would still force them to follow orders, he had felt this was the safest option available.
Hermione, meanwhile, had already been thinking about how to control their nominal overseers and turn the rule makers into her own people.
With that maneuver, the accords remained unchanged, and the Avengers were still nominally subject to oversight, giving both the authorities and the rest of the world an answer.
In reality, though, the accords had become a worthless piece of paper.
It was just passing something from one hand to the other. They had preserved appearances and secured the substance, too.
"Sometimes I seriously wonder whether you're really only seventeen."
Tony lowered his voice. "The way you think is more practiced than those old politicians who've spent decades on Congress Hill."
"What exactly do you have in that head of yours?"
"You're just too childish."
Hermione's tone was flat. "With that blunt, straightforward personality of yours, you really ought to find time to kneel at Obadiah's grave and thank him for the fact that Stark Industries is still standing after all these years."
That left Tony spluttering for a good while.
He wanted to argue, but on reflection, without Obadiah handling the dirty business tactics and