Here is chapter 23, enjoy and review :D
Leopard winced as her claws were yanked by the rocks; she ignored the pain as she slid down to her friend's fallen form. Reaching Shimmersky she raced over, happy to see the ginger and white she-cat was still breathing.
"Shimmersky" she yowled "I thought you had joined starclan" she pressed her muzzle to her friend's flank.
Shimmersky breathed roughly "Not yet". She lifted her head slightly, her body quivering with the effort. Looking down at her Leopard sharply inhaled, seeing a trickle of blood coming from Shimmersky's mouth.
"Come one" she nudged Shimmersky with her head "We have to get you back to the top of the gorge"
Shimmersky nodded, shakily standing up then quickly collapsing to her paws, spitting angrily "I can do this" she growled. She attempted to stand again yowling in pain as her back straightened.
Leopard urgently rasped her tongue over Shimmersky's ragged and bloody pelt, cleaning off the blood and dirt and making the fur lay flat "I can drag you up, no need to hurt yourself anymore" she meowed desperately.
Shimmersky shook her head, her amber eyes blazing "you know you won't be able to drag me all the way up that" she growled staring up at the rock face.
Leopard bristled as Shimmersky tried to stand again "Shimmersky, you obviously have broken bones and things could be even worse than that" she shuddered thinking about the internal damage Shimmersky most likely had suffered in the fall.
Shimmersky waved her tail dismissively "I will be fine" she whispered, as if she couldn't even convince herself of the fact.
Leopard quickly got next to her as she tried to stand up again and leaned against her, helping to support her "Alright" she meowed quietly "Let's start climbing, one pawstep at a time".
Shimmersky nodded lifting her left forepaw and placing it shakily on the ledge; Leopard quickly got behind her and helped push her up.
After getting onto the first pawhold, Shimmersky collapsed again coughing roughly, each cough racking through her body. Leopard placed her tail on Shimmersky's shoulder, concern flooding her ice blue eyes.
They continued like this until they were halfway up the cliff face. Shimmersky collapsed in exhaustion, Leopard prodded her with her forepaw "Come on, were almost there" she meowed pleadingly.
Shimmersky shook her head, "I can't do this" she whispered, a bout of coughing racking her body as blood spouted from her lips coloring the rocks in a cruel red.
Leopard couldn't stand it any longer "I'm dragging you up now, it isn't too far and I'm not going to listen to you argue with me" she snapped bending down and grabbing Shimmersky's scruff in her jaws.
She began dragging Shimmersky's now limp body up to the top of the gorge, her paws scrabbled for a foothold in the sandy rocks, and digging her claws into the rocks she winces in pain feeling them rip and tear.
Blood welled around her paws and she clawed her way to the top, pulling Shimmersky's body up and over. Leopard collapsed to the ground, paws bleeding and heart pounding, next to Shimmersky. The she-cat lay unnaturally still.
Leopard leapt to her paws, prodding Shimmersky with her nose "Shimmersky?" she growled "Don't do this to me" she snarled "Don't leave me".
"She is already gone Leopard" a soft meow sounded behind her.
Leopard turned around, her fur bristling and her teeth bared "How dare you take her from me Firestar's she snarled.
The ginger tom gazed at her thoughtfully "I did not take her, she has gone to hunt with starclan" he waved his tail in the direction of Shimmersky's body and Leopard whipped around to see a faded shape near Shimmersky's body.
The shape looked familiar yet somehow strange, the she-cat had a ginger and white splashed pelt and bright playful amber eyes and stars in her fur. It was Shimmersky. Next to her stood two more faded shapes, a large pale ginger tom and a lithe black she-cat.
Lionstorm! Shadow! Leopard almost yowled aloud for joy of seeing her parents; she raced over to them, breathing in their sweet scent. Shadow placed her tail on her daughter's shoulder and Lionstorm looked down at her, his eyes beaming with pride.
"We are so proud of you Leopard" Shadow murmured "We love you very much and I promise we will see each other again" she rubbed her muzzle against Leopard's. Lionstorm rasped his tongue over her ears "We will always be watching you, protecting you" he meowed.
Shimmersky padded over to Leopard, her eyes bright with a new wisdom one gains from death. Leopard looked down at the ground "I should have gone last, you shouldn't be dead" she meowed.
Shimmersky shook her head "Don't be silly Leopard, this is the things are and the way things should be. At the very end, it was me who pushed the last wolf over, I did it to protect everyone" she confessed.
Leopard lifted her head meeting her friend's solemn amber eyes "How could you do that? Sacrifice yourself" she murmured. Shimmersky laid her tail on her friend's shoulder "It had to be done, I promise we will see each other again, you are not alone I will always be padding beside you"
Leopard nodded solemnly as the three figures began to fade. Turning she only faced Firestar. The ginger tom looked her up and down, his whiskers twitching with amusement.
"Now what will you do?" he meowed cautiously. Leopard stood up straighter "I will take her back to the tribe, tell them the news, bury her and then I will return to my clan" she meowed finally after a few heartbeats of thought "It is where my heart truly lies".
Firestar nodded in agreement "You have always been a clan cat at heart. I saw it in you the moment you were born"
Leopard tilted her head "If I have always been a clan cat at heart then why did I have to come and save the tribe?"
Firestar shrugged "This danger was detected long before your birth and the prophecy that led you here was decided then, it didn't matter where you were or where you came from" he meowed "As long as you came".
Leopard nodded in understanding, turning she padded over to Shimmersky's limp body, she ducked her head grooming away all the dirt and blood from her friend's sleek white and ginger pelt.
"I must take her back now" she whispered "She would prefer to be buried in Thunderclan but I guess the tribe will have to do" she murmured, turning to say goodbye to Firestar she met the empty air, the ginger tom had vanished.
Ducking her head she gripped Shimmersky's scruff in her jaws, dragging her back in the direction of the camp.
AN: Thanks for all the amzing reviews, only two or three more chapters for this story, i hate to end it but i have acomplished everything i wanted to in it. I have decided i will be writing a sequel. And i will post the first chapter to that as soon as this story is done, please check that out as well. RRR :D