AN: Well here it is, the third and final installment in this series. This will lead us to our well deserved HEA but of course, it will be a bumpy ride. Thanks for continuing on this journey with me!

Chapter One

"Atta boy." Ana smiled as Maxwell ate the carrot she was feeding him, he had no idea the significance of this moment, so he was as relaxed as always with his favourite patient. "I don't know what I'm going to do without you boy. You've been such an integral part of us getting to this day." Ana said gently, she'd always been able to speak with Maxwell, since that very first day she'd touched him and he'd looked into her soul and now she had the heart-wrenching task of saying goodbye to him, it was proving harder than she'd anticipated.

She didn't look like the young woman who had been admitted into Westpoint six months previously. There was an incredible visual difference that showed just how far she'd come during that time. She was fifteen pounds heavier, she had colour in her cheeks and a smile that could light up Seattle. She was wearing her hair back in a high ponytail showing off her face and her blue eyes were sparkling in the spring sun. The young girl who'd come to Westpoint was her past, this young woman was her future.

"You listened, never judged, you've been my best friend Max…" She struggled against her tears now, she hated saying goodbye.

"I don't think you're giving yourself enough credit." Jason said as he stroked Maxwell's neck. "You've worked hard Ana and you're ready for this."

"I am ready." She agreed. "So ready, and it's down to everyone here but I'm just going to miss him."

"You'll have to come visit." Jason said. "I'll sneak you in." Ana chuckled, the idea was nice but she knew it was a bad idea, she had to break the ties to Westpoint starting with Maxwell as hard and as painful as it was.

"Christian and I have spoken about getting a horse when the new house is ready. I don't know if I'll ever connect with another one like I did with Max here though, he sees me, he feels with me… do you think that's unique to him?"

"I think you could find another horse you can connect with, though it might take time, I mean horses are incredible animals, Ana, they can be empathic. I'm sure you will find another one though you might want to learn about breaking a horse in or getting one already broken in, if you ever want any tips or advice though you know you can call, I'd be happy to help." Jason was glad to hear that Ana was considering keeping a horse, she was such a natural with them and while at Westpoint she had only shown an interest in Maxwell, Jason knew she would be able to bond with another someday, she just had to find the right one.

"I don't want to say goodbye to him." She sniffled before rubbing the soft spot between his eyes. Goodbye was so final.

After six whole months at Westpoint, it was Ana's turn to say goodbye. For the last three weeks, Ana and Lorna had been building up to this, her leaving day, and while she knew she was ready it didn't make saying goodbye any easier. She was spending the morning with Maxwell and Jason before she would have her goodbye lunch with the patients, not that any of the patients there were people she considered her friends anymore. Over the last few weeks, all the patients who had been there when Ana had arrived had gone home. Alfie was the last one, and he left a couple of weeks previously and as each one had gone, Ana had ensured she didn't become too friendly with those who came in, keeping a distance between them so she wouldn't get attached.

It had been a very productive time for Ana after Elena's death, she'd thrown her energy into dealing with her emotions and her past so she could be a better, healthier person in the future. Elena's death had set Ana free; she knew that it was the same feeling that had filled her as had filled her when Christian freed her from the club. It was intense and overwhelming and Lorna, Sandra, Nancy, and the team at Westpoint had truly helped her break the binds and she'd become a beautiful butterfly.

The big change had come when Lorna had encouraged Ana to write out what she remembered about her past, because she had felt that Ana had had a breakthrough with Eric Lincoln when she had written the impact statement. Ana had found it incredibly empowering to put her memories into words in front of her and she now had what she thought was a half-finished manuscript that she hoped to finish and maybe, someday, publish.

Carrick had helped her a lot too, after everything with Elena was over, Ana had really thought about the fact that the social workers and the police had failed to figure out that she was Annie-Rose and that therefore, they had to be partially responsible for everything that happened to her afterward. Carrick agreed with the Judge who'd come to see Ana and now there was a pending lawsuit against Kings County for what they failed to do. It wasn't about the money, it was about holding someone accountable for what had happened to her, she'd also made police complaints about Bobby, Daddy and the staff at the transition house and there were investigations ongoing. She'd grown so much over the last three and a half months and she was more than ready for her future with Christian.

"Well it's lunchtime." Jason said and Ana nodded before leaning into the horse, this was it, time to go.

"I'll miss you." She said as her eyes filled with tears, saying goodbye to Maxwell was hard, he'd been her best friend. Just as he always did, Maxwell nudged her chin with his nose and Ana gave him one last kiss before she and Jason headed back down to the house. They ate lunch and Lorna bought out cake and Ana celebrated her completing the DBT course with the other staff and patients and she lightened up a lot after the difficult goodbye with the horse. Christian and Grace arrived to collect her and as they took all her things to the car, she had a moment with Sandra and Lorna to say goodbye to the shrinks who had saved her.

"I don't know how to thank you." Ana said awkwardly as they stood just outside the door where Ana had walked out for the last time.

"You thank us, by going home and living your life Ana. You've done so much while you've been here, take it with you out there into the world." Sandra said before giving the young woman a hug. Ana smiled brightly, she was ready for her future and she was truly ready to take all the skills she'd learned in her DBT and apply to them in the real world.

"And you'll see us both at the wedding." Lorna said as Sandra took a step back to allow the primary to have her moment. Saying goodbye was always hard but saying goodbye to Ana was something else entirely, Ana had been a patient like no other, one that they had not been able to distance themselves from, one they had carried the pain of her revelations with them, one who had influenced them and their lives as much as they had influenced hers.

"Thank you for not giving up on me." Ana said to her, trying desperately to blink back the tears that were filling her eyes. "I know I pushed you to the limit."

"Hey, I'd do it all again. Look at you Ana… you did it." Lorna couldn't fight her tears and she felt ridiculous because this was the first time a patient would see her cry when they were leaving, but she couldn't help it. They'd seen Ana at rock bottom, seen her at her very worst, questioned whether or not they'd even be able to stabilise her, let alone be able to actually get her to this point. The kids who usually came to them came from reasonably stable families, had suffered a singular trauma, were needing psychiatric support but rarely on a court order. Ana had been unique in every way and they were so glad they'd been able to get her to this point. Ana chuckled and wrapped her arms around Lorna's shoulders, she owed Lorna so much because she didn't give up on her. It would have been easy to give up on her, she knew that, but Lorna had been determined to get Ana to the end, to get her through the worst of it. If Lorna had given up who knew where she would have ended up.

"Well time to go." Ana said pulling back before she really broke down, because saying goodbye was much harder than she had anticipated. "I guess I'll see you at the wedding." She smiled at the thought.

The wedding was six weeks away now, they'd booked the date as soon as they knew when Ana would be leaving Westpoint, which had given them a total of nine weeks to pull it together. Lorna gave Ana one last brief hug before the young woman turned and walked away. Christian and Grace stood by the car waiting for her and she beamed at them, this was it, her future right in front of her. Tears prickled at her eyes and she shook her head and smiled at Christian and Grace until she was close enough for them to grab her in an embrace. Lorna and Sandra linked arms, they looked at each other their eyes meeting and a smile spreading over their faces while they fought their tears. They'd done it, they'd got her here, five and a half months ago they thought they were going to be transferring her out yet here she was, going home, happier and healthier than ever.