Anya/Bunnies Picspam
Anya/Bunnies is probably one of the most misrepresented and underrepresented pairings in all of the BTVS fandom. Mostly because it deals with the dark side of nature. Theirs is a story that spanned ages, filled with angst, abuse, adoration, and other a-words. This is their tortured story. The story of doomed love, of fluff, of anguish, and most importantly, of finding your own inner strength.
THE BEGINNING
OLAF: (looking around the room) Is it my imagination, or do we have substantially more rabbits in this house today?
ANYA: Oh, they breed so quickly that it's-
ANYA: The rapid reproductive rate of our rabbits...
-Selfless
Their love started out simple enough. Anya, genuinely affectionate towards the bunnies, plays both housekeeper and caregiver for them. They are lost without her. However, as with many relationships, the strain of reproduction becomes too much. We can only assume that more rabbits means more food to feed them and more time to care for them which means less self-time and less money. And as is well documented, the two largest reasons for divorce are money issues and one person feeling the burden of the relationship. Money issues can cause tension, anger, and it can cause once loving partners to lash out physically at each other.
HISTORY
Xander: “That’s your scary costume?”
Anya: “Bunnies frighten me.”
-Fear, Itself
Now we have over a millenia since Anya's unfortunate breakup with the bunnies. We are never really given a cause but if we examine this line from Anya to Xander, we can see that perhaps money issues weren't the only reason for their break up. First the word "bunnies". Bunnies, plural of bunny. Bunny from the order Lagomorpha, the family Leporidae. The second word "frighten". Webster defines "frighten" as to make afraid, to terrify. And lastly "me". In this case, the me refers to the speaker, Anya. So in essence, Anya is terrified of lagomorphs. What could cause her to be so terrified? It isn't until later we recieve more clues as to why.
MORE HISTORY
Anya shrieks as she sees something in another box. Xander comes over to look.
ANYA: God, who, who would put something like that there? Is this supposed to be some sort of sick joke?
She picks it up. It's a small toy bunny.
ANYA: I mean, things aren't bad enough! (pause) This is an omen.
XANDER: Hey, hey, shh. (rubs her shoulders)
ANYA: No, no, it's an omen. It's a higher power, trying to tell me through bunnies that we're all gonna die. Oh god.
-The Gift
Clearly, Anya associates bunnies with a very negative experience, something that a higher power would be priveldged to know. One has to wonder what horrors bunnies put her through during the course of their relationship that would push her to pray to a higher power for help.
THE TRUTH COMES OUT
ANYA: I've got a theory! It could be bunnies!
ANYA: (shrieking a la Alanis Morissette)
Bunnies aren't just cute like everybody supposes!
They've got them hoppy legs and twitchy little noses!
And what's with all the carrots?
What do they need such good eyesight for anyway?
[playing air guitar]
Bunnies!
Bunnies!
It must be bunnies!
-Once More With Feeling
Now clearly, Anya is fixated on three things about bunnies: legs, noses, and eyes. Bunnies have very powerful back legs that yes, can be used for hopping, but they can also be used for violent kicking. Noses, located right above a group of sharp, pointy teeth. And eyesight, neccessary for finding the perfect places on the body to kick and bite in order to inflict the most damage. From her solo, it is clear that Anya was a victim of bunny on human crime.
THE MEMORY REMAINS
ANYA: (reads from book) Bara bara himble gemination.
A bunny suddenly appears on the table in front of Anya. She screams and grabs Giles.
Reveal Anya standing on a chair holding the book close to her face. We see that there are bunnies everywhere: on the floor, the counter, the bookshelves.
ANYA: This book made the little fluffers, and this book's gonna send 'em back. I've got it this time, okay. (reads) 'Himble abri, abri voyon.'
Another bunny appears by Giles's feet.
GILES: Yes, dear.
Anya looks alarmed.
We see that the shop is even more full of bunnies, and also a green cloud that hovers in the air by the ceiling. Anya stands on the round table with her head almost in the green cloud. The bunnies crawl around sniffing the floor.
GILES: Come down, and we will go about fixing this in a sensible fashion!
ANYA: Sensible! You think it's sensible for me to go down into that pit of cotton-top hell, and let them hippity-hop all over my vulnerable flesh?
-Tabula Rasa
Despite the fact that Anya has lost her memory, she retains her muscle memory, that her muscles were abused by bunnies. She even alludes to this fact again by mentioning her vulnerable flesh. The audience sees an even clearer picture of what Anya must have suffered, how the throng of bunnies overwelmed her, hungry for food and attention, their numbers were legion.
MOVING ON
ANYA: Oh, God. I'm terrified. I didn't think. I mean, I- I just figured you'd be terrified, and I would be sarcastic about it.
ANDREW: Picture happy things... a lake, candy canes, bunnies.
ANYA: (gets angry) Bunnies! Floppy, hoppy... (holds up her sword, ready to attack) bunnies.
-Chosen
At long last, Anya is able to use the memories of her failed relationship with the bunnies for something positive. She channels her anger, her fear, imagining now that instead of a fluffy soft horde descending upon her, she is attacking them. She raises her sword high and in that moment, perhaps she forgives them. Forgives them for having an overactive sex drive, for being so fertile, for having no choice but to turn on her. Perhaps in her dying moments, she sees a world where everyone has one bunny, who can only reproduce once. And in that world, she will be reunited with her very first bunny, her first love.
HAPPY APRIL FOOLS!
AND HAPPY EARLY EASTER (IF YOU CELEBRATE IT)
DON'T THINK BUNNIES ARE EVIL AND VIOLENT?
CHECK OUT 10 CREEPY BUNNY MOVIES
Because these picspams keep getting stolen and reposted to Tumblr, I've had to go back and add watermarks to them. I didn't want to but my hand has been forced here. -Kelly, Nov. 10