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Throwing Stones

Chapter Twelve: Stern Warning

Kagome winced as her chest gave a painful twinge. She felt her heart racing uncomfortably through her veins as breathing grew more difficult.

She was way too stressed to be dealing with this.

She fought to keep the trembling in her arms and legs from showing as she stood before the Safety Commission's President.

"I received a concerning report that your inmates threatened one of our staff when they arrived to perform their inspection. Were you aware of this incident, Miss Higurashi?" The woman's face was stoic and her voice firm.

Kagome gave a short nod of her head, "I was aware that there was some altercation between Houjo and my group's participants. I had briefly stepped out to call my colleague back to the dorm as Houjo reported to the wrong location."

Which was the truth.

Houjo had gone to the dorm first instead of the Saito's family home like he was originally supposed to. Houjo was never supposed to have been in close contact with the participants at all but his decision to try to chase her had brought about this entire interrogation.

"Are you claiming that our representative is at fault?" The president's tone was incredulous.

"That I am." Kagome asserted despite the pain squeezing down on her chest. "If you'd opened the file I'd given you when I first started this project, you would've seen my direct request that Houjo be kept as far away from it as possible due to his previous behavior." She glowered at the older woman, "Being in a position of power means that you hold the responsibility. By assigning someone who'd been issued a restraining order in the past, you not only violated the law but the good will clause of our agreement."

Kagome's voice rose with her irritation, "You ignored my request and assigned someone who violated protocol and created a dangerous situation. My charges are still adjusting to life at the dorm. They were not supposed to be in contact with your representative at all. Yet here we are."

The president's eyes thinned at her, "Shifting blame won't change the outcome Miss Higurashi."

Fury rushed through her veins.

Kagome took several steps forward, "The outcome that you are responsible for. Pray tell, Houjo was walking just fine when he left the dorm. Where's his medical sign off sheet? I'd like to know if they actually harmed him or if he's just crying because they said a few words to him." She glared at the older woman in a challenging manner, "Let's cut the bullshit. You gave me one year then signed a written agreement that you wouldn't assign Houjo due to the restraining order I have against him. Now here we are. You've only given me one week and you've already violated your written agreement. I needn't remind you that my condition won't stop the lawsuit from tearing your facility down to the ground if you don't uphold your end of the deal."

Both the President and her assistant flinched.

"Very well, but another mistake like this won't be tolerated." She tried to cover herself.

Kagome folded her arms over her chest, "The only mistake here is that someone actually hired you for this position. At least try not to fail any more than you already have. You know that I have my lawyer on speed dial if I need."

She stalled out of the office and slammed the door shut behind her.

She wouldn't grovel on her knees for mercy no matter how desperate she was. Especially not in front of them.

"Kagome!" Houjo rushed down the hall towards her.

Without thinking, Kagome cocked her hand back and struck him as hard as she could across his cheek. Houjo tumbled back onto the floor, clapping a hand to his cheek in shock.

"Next time," She threw him a cool glare. "I won't stop with just a protection order."

She knew exactly why he'd reported the incident.

"I'm not stupid." She glowered at him, "Pulling this stunt isn't going to make me change my mind. I've given you my answer and I expect you to respect it." Her voice lowered as she took one step towards him, "If you dare threaten me or the people under my care again with another false report, I will bury you in a mountain of debt and throw you into a jail cell next to one of the criminals you've false accused before."

At his look of shock, she'd nearly laughed.

"Oh that's right, I know all about that. I also know that Shuichi was the one you had told the judge to give the harshest sentence to." Kagome pressed the sharp heel of her stiletto against his thigh, "You had that man sentences four times the amount a regular person would have in that situation due to him being a heteromorph." Kagome added more weight onto her heel causing him to wince in pain, "I've got records of the payments you sent to that judge too. I've been building a case against you ever since the day you showed me your true colors. So don't test me. I will tear you down to the pits of hell itself and let you writhe there."

Kagome lifted her foot and stomped down the hall.

She was through with this.

She was through with all of this.

If she could just stay in her tiny town and ignore the outside world, then that was how she'd choose to live the rest of her life.

Kagome stalked into the elevator and hit the button for the main floor's lobby. Her eyes focused on Houjo's writhing form as the doors began to close.

"Wait—!" He called out, reaching towards her futilely. However the doors closed before he could even finish his sentence.

Kagome breathed a sigh of relief as her legs gave out from beneath her. She clutched her hand at her chest as her heart beat painfully beneath her breast.

With shaky hands, she reached into her purse and pulled out her emergency medication. She'd known that she'd have an issue the second she'd received the call from the Safety Commission. So she'd brought it with her along with a bottle of water.

Kagome trembled as she struggled to pop the cap and take only a single pill. Once finished, she tucked both the bottle and her water into her purse once more. The elevator's slow descent gave her plenty of time to grab onto one of the side bars and pull herself back onto her feet.

Her heart still clenched painfully and her chest still felt heavy, but she knew that it would only be a matter of time before the medicine kicked in.

She felt both nauseous and weak all at once. With her legs still shaking violently, she barely managed to hold herself upright.

The doors to the elevator opened and Kagome strolled out. The small bus they'd rented for the duration of her program sat outside for her. She climbed aboard and found Aizawa already waiting for her.

Wordlessly, he'd pulled her into the front seat while the bus began its long trek home.

"Here," He took the seat next to her and helped her steady herself. "Take a breather."

The man's expression was full of concern as he checked her heart rate.

"You're running high," Dark brows furrowed. "We should stop at the hospital first."

Kagome shook her head, "I'm fine."

She reached out and clutched at the cloth of his shirt, "I brought my medicine with me. I'll be fine."

Despite her words, her old teacher didn't look convinced.

She was grateful for Aizawa's presence. When he'd asked her in her first year at U.A. what kind of hero she'd wanted to be, he hadn't laughed at her or called her crazy. He also never once judged her for her connection to Shinigami. In the man's words, they were only responsible for their own actions. Their bloodline didn't define them.

She could honestly say that without Aizawa there to support and guide her all those years ago, she wouldn't be here running this program today.

"What's the verdict?" The man opted to change the subject. He was already aware of the fact that arguing with her would lead them nowhere.

"We're fine for now." Kagome breathed as the sharp clenching in her chest began to ease some, "I threatened them with Sesshoumaru. So they won't be trying a stunt like that again."

She pressed her palm to her collarbone as the pulsing within her veins gradually calmed.

It was finally working.

"They'll be assigning us a new caseworker. So we'll need to be prepared for that." Kagome slouched in her seat, "One week and they've already tried to end it." Her brows furrowed with the fury she felt, "I didn't do all of this just for them to play power games with me. If they want a fight then I'll tear them down to their foundation before I die."

Perhaps even after too knowing how ruthless Sesshoumaru was in the courtroom.

She closed her eyes as she settled against her mentor, "I'm going to rest. Wake me when we get there."

The image of everyone crowded around the television and partaking in a jovial conversation filled her mind.

If only every day could be like that.

A small smile spread across her lips.

She could think of no better way to end her day.