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

Chapter 14

*Not Edited*
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Phillip grabbed his coat and ran out to find Anne, as well as her brother, the Barnum's, and the rest of the troupe. They spread out on the circus grounds, looking in her caravan, her dressing room, and even the stables where she help looked after the animals. W.D., Phillip and the Barnum's went into the city when the brother remembered where she might be.

The dark man led them to the Lower East Side, a bit of a walk from the circus grounds. They made their way to an old building, one that looked abandoned. Charity kept Helen and Caroline close, unsure of what was lurking in the run-down building.

Anne's brother, who showed no sign of worry, walked in. In the building, it looked like a refuge. There were people of all race living together. Some looked at them in curiosity, but one smiled and greeted the group.

"W.D.!" The woman exclaimed, her accent as strong as wood. She ran up and hugged him. "It has been too long since you've come,"

"I know," He answered. The man looked around, sighing at the sight of more people and families in the building. "Not much has changed I see,"

He looked back at Phillip and the Barnum's, forgetting the reason they were there. "Allow me to introduce to you an old friend, Celia. Celia, this is Phillip Carlyle, Phineas Taylor Barnum, Charity Hallett-Barnum, and their two daughters, Helena and Caroline,"

"It's a pleasure to meet you," The woman, Celia, greeted them and shook each of their hands. She was a white woman with blonde hair and a tattered dress. Her hair had some tangles in it, and dirt covered her clothing. Despite looking like a homeless woman, she showed good manners to the guests.

"What is this place?" Phillip asked. As he looked around, he mostly saw women with small children, who played. Helen and Caroline smiled and joined them.

"This is The Sanctuary," Celia told them. "People who need a home or lost it will come here. It is secret to some, but we always look out for each other,"

"After a few days," W.D. explained. "When Anne and I first came to New York, Celia found us on the street and took us in. She brought us to this place. She gave us a home for a while until we left to a more structured one,"

"They were needed help when no one gave them employment," The woman added.

"Celia, have you seen Anne by any chance?" Phillip asked.

Celia's smiled faded away and gestured them to follow her while Helen and Caroline, who they were playing with rest of the children. The woman took them up the stairs, which soon led to the roof. When they reached the top, there was laundry hanging on the string to dry while the breeze of wind blew them to or fro.

"She's over there," Celia said, pointing to a shadow. W.D. nodded and thank her for the help.

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Anne looked down, sitting criss-cross while the soft, chilly wind blew the laundry sheets back and forth. She had a feeling W.D. was going to find her here, and she was right. Her brother sat beside her, while Phillip, Phineas, and Charity stood behind him.

"I know it's hard," W.D. said to her, "Leaving Mama there, leaving Charlotte. You're more connected with them,"

"I just," Anne said tearfully. "I just sometimes wish they came with us,"

"I know that."

"Anne," Phillip said. "There your family that loved you. I wish I had a family like yours,"

She looked up at him, as did W.D., Phineas, and Charity. They were all confused as to what the ringmaster meant.

"You had a mother who loves you," Mr. Carlyle continued. "You had a friend who cared about your dreams. I never had a family like yours. My father always urged me to follow in his footsteps, and my mother wanted me to marry a high-class woman. My so-called 'friends' always caused some problems, which led to my drinking problem. They never asked me what I wanted, and for a while, I believed that I needed to do what they said,"

"When did that end?" Anne asked.

"When I first met you," His answer surprised her. No one ever saw as nothing more than a maid, slave, and runaway, other than Celia when they reached New York.

"What?" She asked.

"When I first met you, after your performance, you told me everyone's got an act. I always thought of the world as a large puzzle. I was a piece that never found its place in the world until I met you. I felt as if I found my place, and that's to be with you. I felt like everything I was taught and told just disappeared,"

"I changed your life?" Anne asked with a small smile.

"You and everyone at the circus. You became the family that encouraged me to break away from my family. If Phineas never talked me into joining the circus, I would have forever been trapped. I first thought it was a freak show, but I was wrong. It's so much more than a circus and a performance. It brought joy into my life, the first time I ever truly felt it,"

Anne thought about her family again, her mother, father, brother, even Charlotte. They were the family she loved as a child. They protected each other, even if it was successful. Now, at the circus and in The Sanctuary, she still felt protected.

She finally stood up, as did W.D. and hugged each of the members of her people. She felt much better. Even though she still dreadfully miss her mother, Charlotte, and father, Anne remembered she now had a new family that loved and protected her.

They made their way back down the stairs, where they saw Caroline and Helen laughing and playing with a few of the other children. The two young girls saw Anne and hugged her. Celia smiled at the sight of Anne, happy to see her friend feel better.

"Please, come visit soon," Celia said to them before they left the building.

"I promise we will," W.D. answered.

As they walked back to the circus, Phineas said to The Wheeler Siblings, "You don't have to tell us the rest. I believe you've said enough,"

"Well," Anne replied. "after we left the plantation, we've experienced so much more,"
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A/N-- I am now getting caught up in school, and some of my grades have gone up. I have like 2 weeks of high school left until I graduate, so I'll probably update more often in the summer

Also, I am already planning on making a sequel later this year.  I'm still working on the details both this and the sequel if you all are interested. 

!!!Thanks for Reading!!!