-- The fire burned brightly within the circle of stones. The Humans sat and warmed their hands while sharing drink and food and above all, laughter. There were five of them and as the night came on the coals grew and the flames lessened a bit.  They each took up instruments to play.
-- The largest of them stood with a massive drum resting on the ground all the way up to their belly. Two others that looked very similar each had a pair of smaller drums to rest on their laps. And another had a long flute for all kinds of notes. The fifth Human growled a small cough and cleared their throat. They began to play together and the singer also rose to dance.
-- All this the Crow could see from a branch just above the clearing, yet close enough to feel the waves of heat with little smoke. They loved when the Humans gathered, for their merriment sounded like nothing else in the forest. And yet it gathered bits and pieces from every sound and light throughout the wood – and also from deep underground. What the Crow thought was most magical though was how it all spiraled up with the smoke and heat into the sky. He could almost sense the sky’s thankfulness and response with blessings.
-- As these visions began to focus the Crow’s sight within the branches, it laughed once aloud.  The Human that was singing and dancing hooted up into the sky as a smile played across their face. The Crow almost flew, but then noticed another creature with the Humans.
-- A small dog sat next to the Human playing the big drum. Whether brought with the Humans that night or not, the Crow could not say. Yet this was not like the other dogs seen with the Humans before. So, turning its head to one side, the Crow looked closer.
-- The dog appeared at first as wild as any forest creature and was certainly wolfish enough, but it appeared quite … inexperienced. It was fully grown yet it was panting and its eyes darted around the circle as the Humans played. Every once in a while it would pick up a paw seemingly only to shift its weight or scratch its ear, but when it did, it was as if to the beat of the drums.
-- Then the pup raised a paw to try to catch a stray ember from the fire. Missing that, it bounced up onto all legs and made a little leap towards the fire to catch another ember, this time in its mouth.  And it did! The big drummer chuckled and shook their head as the pup looked around in bewilderment, also shaking their own head vigorously.
-- So the pup began to move about the circle. It was first between the twins, skipping from one to the other, nipping at their heels and making them laugh, then being shooed away. To which it would yip or playfully growl, putting its front paws and chest on the ground. It was so happy, and gaining energy.
-- Then it went to the flute player. The flutist was standing now and the pup kept trying to stand on hind legs while barking sharply as if trying to join in. When it lost its balance it would move to face the music again! Of course, the flutist was swaying as they played and so it was as if the two of them were dancing, though to the pup it was indeed just a happy game.
-- When the pup grew a bit tired it wandered over to the singer. At first it was mesmerized by their beauty, for it simply sat and looked at the singer as they danced, its head moving a little as if listening for how they moved with the music.
-- Suddenly the Crow felt a shiver, shook its head, and the pup joined the singing by howling loudly! It is a Wolf after all! Why, it must have been drawn to the fire just seeking some companionship. And so as the young Wolf found places to howl with the Humans, the Crow took flight at last, laughing up towards the night. Little did it know, though, the transformation that had begun. As the Moon slid from behind a cloud, a long, deep, purring growl began in the depths of the big drummer’s soul.