Chapter Two:

The Totems

Piper returned to the Tardis with two shave ice when the Doctor had finished changing and stepped out of the police box. He was now in his brown suit and blue undershirt with no tie.

“You do know you’re still going to get blistering hot in that, right?” Piper asked.

The Doctor shrugged. “I like my suits. Why bother changing into anything else?”

Piper rolled her eyes and giggled. “Here’s your shave ice Uncle Doctor.”

 .

Piper’s shave ice was orange, yellow, and pink, while the Doctor’s was green and blue.

“Ah, thank you Piper!” He exclaimed, delighted.

Piper dipped her spoon into it and took a bite. She smiled.

“It’s so soft!” she hissed.

The Doctor took a bite out of his and passionately agreed.

“SO much better than snow cones!” He cried, “Snow cones are so hard! And all the syrup falls to the bottom and leaks out the covering!”

Piper chuckled. “Uncle Doctor, you’re spoiling my tastes!”

 .

They watched the scenery and listened to the peace of the island. The birds twittered in the trees on the other side of the road, the wind blowing through them, and the gently drifting sea. Piper glanced at the Doctor for a moment, surprised that he didn’t seem antsy. She was with the Doctor long enough to know that he would greatly dislike the idea of simply sitting on a beach chair and tan himself. He’d go mad! But today, he seemed relaxed, and that made Piper happy.

“Makes you never want to leave doesn’t it?” Piper asked, “Sights like this. We always forget to take in the natural beauty around us. Don’t often have a chance to just stop and listen.”

“Oh, it just gets better!” said the Doctor, smiling excitingly, “There are so many paradises all across the universe just as beautiful as this!”

“Yes, but that’s the best part about Earth!” Piper observed, “It sustains so many ecosystems! Every other planet out there…One could have a jungle and possibly desert, one could just have snow. But Earth has it all! It’s wonderful!” She gazed out over the horizon. “Earth is broken in so many ways, and yet, its beauty lives on.”

The Doctor didn’t answer. He just looked at her.

“What a planet to live on!”

 .

When they finished, the Doctor sat up and announced, “Well! How about we have one more stroll down the beach, then head on over to the festival?”

Piper nodded. “Okay. Sounds good.”

They picked up all their things, took each other’s hand, and started their walk.

 .

They had gotten to the west side of the beach, when they come across some artifacts on display. It had ropes tied around it, along with a wooden plaque with carved out words.

“Fascinating!” The Doctor observed, “You don’t see things like this out in the wild. They are usually in museums!”

“They’re…tiki totems” Piper announced.

“Yeah, and they hold great significance to the Hawaiians respectively.”

Piper leaned in to examine them closer. The totem had four pictures. The first one was a rectangular object that looked like to be doors, with three smaller squares inside it. The second picture was a smiling tiki face, with wide eyes, and was wearing a vest with a U-shaped shirt underneath. The third picture had a more widened mouth, not smiling, but large teeth showing, a high-hairline, with a suit and what looked like to be a tie. The final picture on the bottom was a strange, yet familiar object that looked like to be a futuristic machine. Suddenly, Piper was starting to wonder if this was something important.

“Uncle Doctor, do you notice anything strange about them?” Piper asked, “Like that-” she pointed at the square machine on the totem, “-That looks like the Tardis!”

The Doctor pulled his glasses out of his pocket and put them on, squinting at the totems.

Piper continued, gesturing to the totem with the vest, “That looks like me! And the one with the tie looks like you!” Piper’s eyes widened.

“You’re right, they do…” The Doctor replied, mumbling.

He took out his sonic screwdriver and scanned the totems.

“These are over two hundred years old” The Doctor observed.

He made a face. “My nose ‘snot that big!”

Piper stepped to the side to read the plaque aloud.

“‘This tiki totem has stood firm on this beach for hundreds of years. It represents the legend of two travelers who descended from the heavens to save the native tribe from certain disaster. They appear to depict a man, a woman, and some kind of box-like object’.”

“Yep, that definitely sounds like us” the Doctor said.

“Then it sounds like we need to be somewhere” Piper announced.

“Seventeen hundred years…” The Doctor mumbled.

He took his glasses off and back in his pocket, as well as his sonic screwdriver.

“That’s 700 A.D.”

“If my History serves me correct, didn’t Europeans make contact with the native Hawaiians in the 1800s?” Piper asked.

“You’re half-right” the Doctor agreed, “Captain James Cook first made contact with the native Hawaiians in 1778.”

“Okay, I’ll take the half-right” she added, “So…are we…gonna investigate?”

The Doctor glanced at her. “Looks like it.”

The two grinned. Piper took his hand, and they took off back towards the Tardis.

 

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*

 

The Tardis grinded and whirred as it landed far to the left side of the beach. Piper stepped out with a cream, knitted cover up over her orange bathing suit. She left her hat in her room and instead brought a small pack containing her sonic screwdriver and mobile phone. Aulani Beach was as quiet as they had left it. However, the scenery had drastically changed. The rocky wall that surrounded Aulani Beach was now a mountain wall. Even the beach stretched out farther out towards the sea than before. The only aspect that remained the same was the hill up towards the jungle, and it wasn’t as steep.

“Wow! This is much more beautiful than 2008!” Piper exclaimed.

“Climate change,” the Doctor announced, “Everything is bigger the farther back to Earth’s creation you go. The Hawaiian islands were practically one continent at this point! The span between them were like rivers rather than ocean.”

“Amazing” Piper commented.

The sun was setting on Aulani. It was apparent that the Tardis brought them on a day where a party was held, as Piper could hear lively flutes and percussion from up the hill, as well as warm glowing torchlight. The Doctor skipped out the door and locked the Tardis behind them.

“Good time to arrive, I think” Piper commented.

“So it seems,” The Doctor replied.

He took her hand and squeezed it.

“Now, remember to be careful Piper. These people may have never seen Europeans before, let alone aliens, nor will they until thousands of years in the future. So be cautious of what you say” he warned.

Piper nodded. “Always, Uncle Doctor.”

“There are also going to be some customs that we may not be used to. But I need you to go along with anything they tell you…” then he added as he cocked his head back, “Unless it involves murder.”

Piper giggled. “Uncle Doctor, have you forgotten that I’m not human? Of course I’ll be careful!”

“Right, yes,” the Doctor sighed, “Let’s go!”

 

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*

 

The hill was a much steeper climb than before, and not even a dirt road with a promise of flat land. By the time they reached the top, Piper’s feet were aching. However, once they made it to the torchlight and upbeat music, she was quickly distracted from them. There was a giant crowd of people, standing around a circle as others danced with flower crowns and flowing skirts. Onlookers watched and beamed and some even clapped their hands. A small group of musicians, which consisted of four, elderly men wearing loincloth, sitting off to the side, all were playing instruments in rhythm, one of the instruments looked like a gourd, another looked like drumsticks, another like a drum, while another was a flute, would call out a phrase, and the dancers would repeat it. It was almost like a chant, but not repetitive or unsettling, it was passionate and stoic. Piper felt the excitement rush through her, her soul calling her to sing along, but she didn’t know the words. The Doctor led her closer towards the crowd. Piper was a little nervous at first meeting these new people. Like her uncle said, these natives have never seen people like them. Would they be hostile towards the Doctor and Piper? Would they be suspicious of their intentions? Her hearts then skipped a beat when the outskirts of the crowd spotted them. At first, they seemed surprised to see the fully clothed strangers with pale white skin. However, as if the music and the dancing placed a spell on them, the natives gestured them in the inner mass with smiles.

“Aloha ‘oe! Aloha ‘oe!” They greeted excitedly, “Greetings to you!”

That was one word Piper understood well. “Aloha!” She greeted back.

The Doctor have her an odd look.

“What?” She asked defensively, raising an eyebrow, “It’s not every day I can use that word authentically!”

The Doctor didn’t respond and turned back to the dancers in the center. They had just finished a dance and the Hawaiians clapped in joyful response. Then, the dancers dispersed and another group came to the center. This time, all women and young girls. They all wore serious expressions as they came to position. Piper couldn’t help but focus on one particular dancer: a girl about her age, with a pink wrapped skirt, a white blossom lei on her head, and long, silky black hair and brown eyes. Then, the drums began, and another dance began.

 .

“Pele is at Hawai`i, She is dancing at Maukele,

She surges and puffs this way, Devouring the land of Puna,

It makes Paliuli beautiful, Fire tongues leaping at the cliffs.”

 .

As Piper was watching, the Doctor was noticing something as well. There were two pairs of eyes in the crowd that were watching them. One was a young boy, standing in the front with short brown hair and darting eyes. He was more observing Piper with a suspicious glance. The other was a tall, big man who was wearing a bright red and yellow robe and a feathered helmet. He was less suspicious and more curious. The Doctor shifted his weight and stuck his hands in his pocket. He was ready for questions to be asked after this dance.

 .

“It is heard at Maui, Land of Kaulula`au,

Where will we find peace? Oh, how we yearn on the road,

The end of my song, A name song for Hi`iaka.”

 .

Now the girl dancer was picking up on Piper’s stare. Piper froze and quickly turned away, her cheeks turning slightly pink. The girl didn’t express much of a reaction, and remained focused on her dance.

“Where will we find peace?, Oh, how we yearn on the road,

The end of my song, A name song for Hi`iaka.”

 .

Then, the song ended. There was a eerie moment of somber silence, as if it was out of respect, or fear. A shiver went down Piper’s spine. She reminded herself that the island they were standing on was the birthplace of hula, Molokai. It was almost like she had just witnessed a piece of grand history.