Raul wished his projects could take off as spectacularly well as his friend, Percival's had, with the magic birds which he made out of butterflies. Raul, however, was not interested in attending magic school, because he did not agree with everything they did there. They sometimes performed tricks which Raul felt were just wicked; like making cats turn into mice, which were then caught by other cats.
Anyway, Percival was already eighteen years old, Raul thought. So he felt better about his own shortcomings because he himself was still only sixteen years old.
“It is alright for the public to be so impressed with Percival now," Raul said to Lexi, his lifelong bird friend who sat perched on his shoulder.
Raul's friends sometimes thought that Lexi could be human. They didn't want to accept the fact that he was just a bird which learned to talk, like any other parrot, according to Raul's explanation. He refused to entertain the subject any further.
“So, what are your plans?" asked the bird.
“I'm just going to keep trying, I guess," Raul responded while he threw a pebble over his other shoulder, as a sign of him dismissing Percival's success.
Raul appreciated the moments when Melinda, his girlfriend of almost two years, encouraged him in his projects.
Melinda had just flown back to her own home, after she transformed back into an eagle. They had enjoyed a picnic out on the mountain with Lexi.
“I get so frustrated when there's no response to my input on the phone," Raul would explain in despair. He needed electrical appliances to start responding at the touch of a cell phone command and through the power of his prism.
“My day will also come, surely?" Raul said to another bird perched on a low tree branch. He briefly wondered whether the bird had perhaps escaped from Percival's bird sanctuary. It was rather colourful.
Raul then walked down the driveway of his four storey home, until it levelled and led to the elaborate front porch, with its imposing pillars. He felt proud to be the eldest son of such a respectable family. Lexi flew away at that moment.
Right now, Raul needed a lift to his self-esteem, because his dreams seemed to be so far beyond his reach. So he chose to use the main entrance, instead of a side door. As he walked into the large entrance hall, Raul briefly paused to admire the large chandelier hanging above his head.
He then went straight to his bedroom, where he studied everything that he had worked on during the past six months. There were wires and electronic devices all over his desk. Way at the back of the huge desk was his personal prism. He placed all his hope in the powers which lay inside of it, but he did not know how to utilize it fully.
The prism was a gift from his paternal grandfather, just before he died, when Raul was twelve years old.
“How do I use it?" Raul had asked his ailing grandfather.
“You will learn how to use it as soon as you learn how to connect with it," his grandfather had responded.
“And how do I connect with it?" Raul had asked curiously.
“When you look really deep into it," his grandfather had replied, before falling asleep.
Raul did not pursue the matter any further, because his grandfather was really sick and frail at that point and died a few days afterwards. Raul had then packed away his treasure until he turned fifteen and was curious enough to try and figure it out.
“Perhaps I should consult with Melinda, because she has more of a knack at tricks than I do?" Raul wondered out loud.
So, he quickly phoned Melinda.
“Raul, just group everything into categories and then really focus," Melinda advised immediately after Raul had voiced his frustrations.
Raul followed her advice and then opened his bedroom window, so that Lexi would feel free to come and chat to him. Raul needed all the advice that he could get.
Lexi was there, sitting on the window sill within the next five minutes.
“Now, what?" he asked.
“What took you so long?" Raul responded.
“I'm here, am I not?" the wise bird answered promptly.
“Okay, so what do I do now?" Raul asked the bird.
“So you are finally asking for advice," Lexi commented.
“If you would be so kind," Raul responded with a bow.
“Look into your prism, until you see something," Lexi stated calmly.
Raul picked up the prism and studied it closely for a few minutes.
“I see a house," he announced uncertainly. He was not so sure about what he should be seeing.
“Good. Now don't remove your focus and continue to stare," Lexi responded.
Lexi had learned many tricks from the time when he was a circus bird.
Raul then saw furniture inside the house. He focussed deeper, until he could see electrical appliances as well.
“I see electrical appliances," he announced excitedly.
“Now use those codes on your cellphone to move those objects around, but focus your cellphone radar closely on the prism," Lexi advised.
Raul took his cellphone and entered the codes which he had memorised. He couldn't wait to see the objects in the house move in response.
“I've got it!" he exclaimed in excitement when he noticed electrical appliances in the house turn on and off. He also managed to move some of the furniture around, with the use of the cell phone.
“Congratulations! Now you can control objects in your own home as well," Lexi said with satisfaction, before flying off into the distant clouds.
Raul repeated his experiment and took a video of the entire process with his iPad. He then sent it to Melinda, excitedly.
“Perfect!" Melinda exclaimed when she called him back. “Now you need to take a break."
“You're right as usual," Raul said in response. “I really need a snack."
In the kitchen he made himself a salami sandwich, topped with loads of cheese, before any of the staff members could spot him. There would be problems when he could not enjoy his nutritious dinner later on.
On his way back upstairs, Raul looked around himself.
“If someone could persevere and build a magnificent house like this, then why can't I persevere and win as well?" he asked himself in the mirror standing at his side.
Raul rushed back to his bedroom to continue with his experiments. He decided to speak to Melinda further from there. Raul knew that there were so many exciting things to be discovered from working on his tricks, if only he did not hold back. He locked the door behind him and when he turned around, Garett stepped out, from behind a curtain.
“How did you get here?" Raul asked, pleasantly surprised.
“Melinda said you had made such progress with your tricks that I had to fly over here and see for myself," he said with his hands in his sides.
Garett, an eagle shape shifter, looked pretty much like some kind of guardian angel, standing there with his blonde hair in curls hanging down on his shoulders and his deep, penetrating grey eyes.
