Blinded By The Past-- The Greatest Showman/Anne Wheeler Fanfiction

Chapter 1

*Not Edited*
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In New York 1850, the Barnum Circus brought the Oddities out of hiding. After nearly a year, they have became an odd family.

One night in the autumn season, after another show performed, Anne was in her dressing room, with curtains were used for the walls. She sat in front of the mirror, removing her makeup and wig.

She looked in the mirror, seeing her caramel-like skin. Anne combed her curly brown hair with her hands. The woman closed her eyes, seeing a blurred memory of her mother.

The acrobat remembered how she and her brother would entertain her family after a long day in the fields. She knew she would fly one day, be free. Free to make her own choices and not have any control her.

She couldn't help but think of how much her and W.D.'s life changed in the past 16 years. They faced so many challenges and Anne was nearly separated from W.D. more than a few times. Now the siblings have found another family. Anne found someone who loves her for who she is.

"Anne," a voice calmly said, though startling her a bit. She saw a man in the mirror and turned around, only to see Phillip. "I was calling your name. Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," She replied to him, grabbing the special shawl that was given to her long ago.

"It's just that you've been like this for a while now. You just seem to zone out of time,"

"Don't worry about it. I was just thinking," Anne got up from her seat and looked into to his eyes. She smiled and so did he. "Now what do you want?"

"I wanted to have a small meeting," He told her. "Just a small announcement if that's alright,"

Anne nodded, walking to the stage. She saw all of the Oddities seated on the seats for the audience. A few acts have been added in the past 12 months, making the show get a bigger audience and added a few more protesters.

Those acts included contortionists, sword jugglers, lion tamers, and more. A few of the new acts have come from all over the world, immigrating and running away to join a show where they are treated equally. Some came from different parts of Europe, Asia and even from other circuses.

Anne sat next to W.D. on the bottom row, who gave her a small hug. W.D. was roughly 5 years older than her, but he was the only blood-related family she had left. They both haven't seen their parents in over a decade, not even knowing if they're alive or not.

"Now that everyone's here," Phillip said, getting everyone's attention. "I would like to make an announcement. Phineas and I have decided to share this show a bit outside of New York,"

The Oddities looked a bit confused, causing a bit of a fuss.

"Let me finish," Phillip calmly demanded. Everyone called down and listened. "As I was saying, Phin and I have decided to travel from state to state. This could give us a chance to share our talents with America."

"Where will we go?" Charles asked.

"We are still making arrangements, but we plan on starting from the South then moving up North. Because of this, those who are black or mixed will have to show their freedom papers,"

Anne looked at her brother, who did react. She squeezed his hand, her heart beating a quickly.

"I believe I do have all of yours since you gave them to Mr. Barnum at your auditions. I just need Anne and W.D.,"

All eyes turned to them. Anne looked at each member of the circus, knowing the challenges they faced in their life are nothing compared to hers or her brother's.

"Do you have freedom papers?" Phillip asked, a bit more cautiously.

Neither of the siblings said a word. Anne closed her eyes, seeing blurred memories of her past.

She remembered the last time she saw her mother, the last time she saw the sunset up in her climbing tree, and the last time she the voice of the man she truly hated and feared. That voice echoed in her mind. She heard all the names he called her.

She remembered how her mother would always try to bring the two siblings scraps the owner and his family left on their plates after they had dinner, since their mother was a house maid.

Even though she only stayed silent for a minute, the young woman felt like she experienced her past again.

Anne couldn't take it anymore. She got up and left the tent, without another word.
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A/N- Hope this is interesting enough. I do plan on getting deeper into the Wheeler's (Anne and W.D.) backstory.

Thanks For Reading 🎪🎉🎈🦄🦁👑