When Hupuhu-sda, or Rattling Wings, saw this, he became anxious about his uncle.

“Behold,” he said, “what shall this human one do among us? He will be regularly getting into trouble. He may even be killed. Therefore, let us make him one of us.”

“Do so if you can,” said his father. “You are very powerful among the Wakan people!”

So Hupuhu-sda asked his uncle to go with him to a wood at some distance. They went and saw a ground very rough with stones and the trunks of gnarled old trees. Here the thunder birds had their nests. There were many nests, having different colored eggs—white, blue, red, and yellow.

“Lo, now you are Tahince-Iheya, a human person,” said Hupuhu-sda, “and we wish to make you a thunder person. Which of these eggs, Uncle, do you wish that I shall put you in?"

“Put me in this huge, white egg in the blue nest,” said Tahince-Iheya, who indeed wished to become Wakinyan. And Hupuhu-sda caused him to go into the egg.

"I will return in four days,” said Hupuhu-sda. In four days he came. The egg was grown very large, filling all the nest, and its shell was cracked in places. Again he went away and returned in four days. The shell of the egg was now fallen to pieces, and the mysterious new one lifted its beak.

Again Hupuhu-sda went home, and returned in four days. A thunder being was in the blue nest—a very great mysterious one was growing. This one had no wings as yet, but lightnings were playing about all his joints and thunder voices muttered shaking the feet.

“Truly, this is a terrible fellow already,” said Hupuhu-sda. “He makes me to fear. Be careful how you move, Uncle,” he said, “lest some harm befall.”

A fourth time Hupuhu-sda returned to the village of the thunder people. He told these people of the wonderful, mysterious one, new-born of thunders.

“This new one will soon appear among us,” said Hupuhusda. “He will come with great lightnings and a great wind. Therefore, drive fast all your tepee stakes lest this village be destroyed. Also we must pray to Tahince-Iheya,” he said. “Therefore make your pipes ready.”

He went again to his uncle, but dared not approach near to him, for a whirl-wind was circling about and clouds hovered above the nest of the thunder-bird.

“Be careful, Uncle, how you approach the village!” shouted Hupuhu-sda. “Ho! Ho! Come slowly, that no harm may come to us. You are indeed become very great and powerful.”

So Tahince-Iheya moved toward the village, going slowly amid thunders and whirlwinds. The people came forth to meet him. They smoked sacred pipes and prayed to this great, mysterious one. As he approached leisurely, they had much ado to save their village. The wind blew a hurricane and rain fell, flooding the earth.

Thus the great mysterious one arrived and was appeased. So it was that he became Tahince-Iheya: chief of thunder and whirlwind people.

Dreams and Thunder: Stories, Poems, and the Sun Dance Opera, p. 63-64