Buffy Bunny Goes to Easter Island

“Attention please ladies and gentlemen, this is the final boarding call for passengers travelling flight ST70 to Easter Island. Please make your way to Gate 4” squaked the loud speaker above Buffy’s head. He quickly stuffed his map back into his bag and hurried through the airport to his gate. The attendant smiled at him as she scanned his ticket and tried to make a joke about how his ears should probably count as carry on luggage.

Buffy smiled shyly and decided that maybe they just weren’t used to bunnies on their planes. He had been getting strange looks all day. First from the Uber driver who came to pick him up from his little house in the woods, then from the lady who had checked in his bags at the front desk. The customs people had not been very polite either, and he ended up having to eat an entire bag of carrots right then and there because they wouldn’t let him take them on the plane.

Because yes, Buffy was boarding a plane. He was going on a trip to Easter Island. Several weeks ago he had decided that the last few holidays had been filled with much too much drama and this Easter he just wanted to have a nice, peaceful holiday. He had heard about Easter Island when he was a small bunny at school and had decided that if he was going to go anywhere on a holiday at Easter time, Easter Island was probably the best place to go. Where better to spend the holiday than somewhere where they obviously celebrated Easter all the time?

Buffy placed his bag in the overhead compartment and settled down in his seat for the flight. He couldn’t really watch the in-flight movie as the headphones provided didn’t quite fit over his ears. Instead, Buffy spent the flight thinking about all the fun he was going to have on his Easter holiday. He closed his eyes and imagined all of the chocolate eggs there must be hidden around the island.

“I wonder,” he thought, “if the people who live there just spend all their days going on Easter Egg hunts and making Easter baskets and bonnets. They probably spend their afternoons painting eggs and in the evenings they most likely sit around the fire making smores with their leftover eggs.”

Buffy must have fallen asleep because the next thing he knew a hostess was shaking his shoulder softly.

“Excuse me, sir,” she said, “We have landed on Easter Island. It's time to leave the plane.” Buffy thanked her, grabbed his bag from the overhead compartment and hurried to the exit. As he stepped down onto the tarmac he squinted in the afternoon sun. He retrieved his luggage from the carousel in the airport, dropped it all off at his hotel, and decided to start exploring immediately.

He wandered around, taking in the bright green of the land and the deep blue of the ocean. He took a deep breath and breathed in the fresh, island air. It was beautiful here. But….he hadn't seen any chocolate eggs yet. He wondered if perhaps it was too late in the day and they had already done the egg hunt that day. He returned to his hotel to have some dinner and get to bed early so that he could be ready for a day of adventure in the morning. As soon as the sun started to peek over the horizon the next morning, Buffy bounded out of bed. He had brought with him his favourite Easter bonnet (one that he had made when he was a tiny bunny in preschool) and headed out. There were people walking around the island, other visitors enjoying the sights, as well as some local people cooking and fishing and enjoying the day. Buffy looked everywhere for Easter Eggs. He looked and looked and looked, but there didn't seem to be any Easter egg hunts happening anywhere. Buffy was feeling very sad. His special Easter holiday to Easter Island was not turning out to be very special after all. Buffy wandered sadly down the coast, dropped his bonnet onto a nearby rock and sat looking out to sea.

“What a silly bunny I am,” he said to himself. “This island hasn't got anything to do with Easter after all.”

“This island is called Rapa Nui little brother,” came a deep voice behind him. Buffy jumped from his rock.

“Hello?” he stammered into the wind.

“Iorana little brother,” said the deep voice again. “Thank you for my new headdress. You have done an excellent job at weaving it”. Buffy looked at his bonnet, and then looked at the rock it was sitting on. He realised that there was a face carved into the rock. It had a large, broad nose and a strong chin. There were rectangle shapes on the side for ears and deep slits carved into the face for eyes.

“Iorana?” Buffy asked, amazed that a rock was speaking to him.

“Iorana means hello on the language of my people, the Rapa Nui.”

“But who….what….are you?” Buffy asked. There was a sound like rocks grating against each other and the ground shook slightly. Buffy was worried, but then he realised that the rock was laughing at him.

“I am a Moai. My people built many Moai around our island as places from which their ancestors could watch over and protect them.”

“So this isn't actually an island for celebrating Easter?” Buffy asked, feeling silly again. The ground shook once more as the Moai laughed.

“Ina, little brother, no. We do like to celebrate here on our island though. We have dances and sing together. We wear feathered headdresses, like this one you have given me.”

“That does sound like fun, I wish I could have been here for a celebration,” Buffy said.

“Let us sing to you. We cannot let you leave without experiencing a true Rapa Nui welcome,” said the Moai. Buffy sat in front of him and waited. Soon, he heard what sounded like a horn and drums on the island breeze. He closed his eyes and listened as the Moai chanted to him.

“Welcome little brother, to our home, to our home.

We have naught to offer but our song, but our song.

May it guide through the day,

Pierce the darkness of night,

Until you can rest once again, in your home, in your home.”

Buffy opened his eyes and saw, sitting in the grass by his feet, a beautiful feathered headdress.

“Thank you!” he cried. There was no reply. Buffy put the headdress on his head and wandered back over the island to his hotel. He enjoyed himself at the beach and wandering over the island until it was time for him to board a plane and go home. He carefully packed his headdress into his suitcase and headed for the airport. Once again, he got strange looks from the other passengers and airport staff as he boarded his plane. After the plane had taken off, Buffy looked out of the window at Easter Island, the island called Rapa Nui by the people who lived there, the island that didn’t actually have anything to do with Easter. He smiled and closed his eyes. He thought he could hear a faint song echoing in his ears.

“Farewell, little brother, from our home, from our home.

We have naught to offer but our song, but our song.

May it guide through the day,

Pierce the darkness of night,

Until you can rest once again, in your home, in your home.”

Once again, Buffy was woken by an air hostess gentle shaking him awake.

“Sir, the plane had landed and it is time to disembark,” she said. Buffy thanked her and made his way off the plane. He collected his suitcase and walked out of the airport. He stopped suddenly and looked around.

“Uh oh,” he said quietly to himself. “This is not the right airport!”