In his not-so-secret lab, Jack Spicer was pounding away on his keyboard, trying to erase a virus he had accidentally downloaded. He ran a hand through his red locks, sighing in frustration. Why was he finding it so difficult to erase a simple virus? He was Jack Spicer, Evil Boy Genius! A petty virus was no match for him! Grumbling a few swears, Jack returned to his task.
He had almost completely erased the offending computer virus, which had taken the form of a little ninja that resembled Tubbimura, when his companion, the Heylin witch Wuya, strolled in.
"Your father sent you a gift?" Wuya asked with a smirk. "Another me, perhaps?" She snickered.
Jack stood and walked over to the table where his package sat, unopened. He had meant to open it earlier but became distracted when the ninja-virus began its assault and kept him from his gift. Now that Wuya pointed it out to him, Jack was curious to see what it was.
"I hope not," the eighteen year old shuddered as he reminisced about first meeting Wuya. "One is bad enough."
Wuya crossed her arms and glared at the albino. "And what's wrong with me?" She growled indignantly.
Jack shrugged, picked up a box cutter and began to open the currently innocent-looking package. When he got it open, he stared at it in deep confusion.
"What the hell??" The mechanic lifted the contents of the box and revealed an old purple lava lamp. "A lava lamp? Who owns lava lamps anymore? What is this, the 1970s?" Jack sat the lamp down on the table and stared at it in disgust. Not for the lamp itself but for how he was currently feeling about his male parental figure.
"Just when does my dumbass father think I was born?!" He growled, palming his face in frustration.
"He must think you're old or else he would keep sending you retro stuff," Wuya giggled.
"No kidding…" After staring at it for a few more minutes, Jack noticed that the lamp was covered in a decently thick layer of dust, which angered him further. "And he doesn't even have the decency to buy a new one?!" The young genius snatched up the lamp and carried it to his bathroom.
Jack paused, suddenly wondering why he was so angry. Then he remembered: the crap his dad sends are either lame or end up ruining his life. He growled. "I hate you, Dad…"
He sat the lamp down on the counter and began looking for a washcloth. After five minutes passed, he was successful in his search. After wetting the rag, Jack placed his hand on the top of the lamp and tilted it slightly to make it easier to clean. A few seconds later, the albino noticed that a faint trail of smoke was coming from the lamp.
"HOLY SHIT!!!" He cried, jumping back.
"What is it now, Jack?" Wuya asked, walking into the bathroom.
Jack pointed to the lamp. "The damn thing's defective! No wonder whoever gave it to my dad was trying to get rid of it!! It's on fire!!"
As the smoke began to clear, a figure became visible. He had tan skin and black hair, he wore stylish sunglasses, a pale blue vest, and he had no legs.
Jack shrieked in his girly way and quickly hid under the nearest table.
Wuya sighed and shook her head. "Please forgive Jack. He gave me the same welcome."
The newcomer held up a hand. "No worries. Happens all the time." He paused "That's a guy?!" He doubled over in laughter. "You're kidding!!"
The Heylin witch chuckled. "Sadly, I'm not. I've known that boy for the better half of three years and he's still a sissy."
The stranger watched as the mechanic crawled out from his sanctuary. He raised an amused eyebrow as Jack picked up the lamp.
"Why me? Why? Why is it that every single time my dad sends some retro piece of junk, something with no legs comes out?!" The boy growled, shaking the lamp violently.
"Well, I'm off to bother Chase. See ya, Jackie!" Wuya grinned, vanishing by means of magic.
"Whatever…" Jack grumbled. He was alone with the intruder. He turned to face the stranger and crossed his arms. Jack's anger had faded and now he was curious. "So, what's your story, Shades?"
The stranger gave Jack a smirk, snapped his fingers and a name appeared in the air.
"I am Norm! I'm a magical genie and for setting me free, you get three rule free wishes!" The so-called genie announced.
Jack raised an eyebrow. He'd seen a lot of magical things and people in the past three years, but a genie? Call him a skeptic, but Jack couldn't believe what he had just heard and started laughing. The name appearing out of nowhere was impressive, but even Wuya could do that.
"What's your deal, pipsqueak?!" Norm growled.
Jack managed to calm down enough to ask, "Are you really a genie?"
Norm nodded, his annoyance reaching its peak. "I am. You don't believe me?" He tilted his head, confused. No one had ever refused to believe he was a genie before. What was with this kid?
The albino shook his head. "Sorry, but no, not really. Wuya can create things out of thin air, too. So, I'm not exactly impressed."
Norm held out his left arm and removed the cuffs around his wrist. As they fell, a tattoo of a '3' in the middle of a circle with a slash through it became visible. "All genies have this same mark. It is proof that we are what we say we are."
Jack stared at it. "That's a cool tattoo… I want one!!"
"Then wish to be a genie and take my place, kid," Norm said, glaring at his new master.
"Okay, I'm not that stupid," Jack said, crossing his arms. "If I say that, then I'll get sucked into a lamp of my own. I know the genie deal: infinite cosmic powers, itty bitty living space, right? And you can't make anyone fall in love, bring back the dead and I can't wish for more wishes."
The genie stared at Jack blankly for a moment before collapsing on the floor laughing hysterically. This kid got his genie information from 'Aladdin' of all things! Norm tried to calm down by taking deep breaths but every time he tried to breathe, he laughed even harder.
"What is so damn funny?!" Jack shouted, a deep blush crossing his cheeks.
Norm gasped for breath. This kid was hilarious! Getting the little red-haired brat to wish him free would be a cakewalk.
"You watch too much 'Aladdin', pipsqueak. How old are you anyway? Fifteen?" Norm asked once he had recovered from his fit of laughter.
Jack shook his head. "I am Jack Spicer! Evil genius! And I'm eighteen, thank you very much!!" He growled through clenched teeth. This genie was starting to piss him off. All Jack had to do was wish this sarcastic jerkwad back into the lamp. But he still had wishes. No sense in wasting them.
"I wish you had legs," Jack said to his wish-granting servant.
Norm blinked at his new master in confusion. Shrugging, he snapped his fingers and his tail became a pair of legs. The pants that appeared actually made Norm want to punch himself in the face: the pants favored Aladdin's. He looked up at Jack and saw a smugly satisfied look on the albino's face.
"Keep smirking, pretty boy. I'd be more than happy to smack that satisfied grin off your face…" Norm muttered. H stalked over to the couch and plopped down on the soft cushions. He crossed his arms and legs and fell back against the couch with a huff.
Jack walked over and sat beside Norm. There was a faint pounding in his chest. Jack blushed. He had only felt this way around Chase Young, his idol, his evil hero. The mechanic barely knew this guy.
"What's your problem? You look like you got a fever."
Jack blinked and looked up at Norm's violet eyes. They were nice eyes. There it is again, that stupid love-struck heartbeat. Jack hated that. It always led to rejection. "I'm fine."
Norm merely shrugged. He looked the boy over. His new master had ivory-colored skin, ruby eyes and fiery hair. Norm sighed. He found Jack attractive and it bothered him. The genie wasn't 'that way', or, at least, he never thought he was. But now, looking at Jack Spicer, Norm felt a pleasing sense of comfort. He liked it here. This little pipsqueak claimed to be evil and Norm had nothing against him.
"You seem to be a hell of a lot smarter than my previous masters… What are you playing at?" Norm asked, raising a suspicious eyebrow at Jack.
Jack shook his head. "I'm not playing at anything. Look, I can be an idiot at times. Wuya never lets me forget. I'm smarter than you think. Anyway, about the whole 'Aladdin' thing… Sorry. Not about your clothes, the 'genie knowledge' thing. But, is that wrong?" He asked.
"Well… Yes and no. You see, genies can grant those types of wishes, but they don't like to," Norm replied, putting his arms behind his head.
"Why?"
"Because the 'falling-in-love' thing might take someone's free will, something most genies aren't down with but, it doesn't bug me. Bringing the dead back is easy, but even I don't like doing it. Way too messy. As for wishing for more wishes, you can, but only for three more wishes at a time. No unlimited wishes right off the bat. You got to earn that. Understand?" Norm explained, watching Jack.
The albino nodded. "Yeah. Thanks for humoring me…" He smiled shyly, scratching the back of his head awkwardly.
Norm looked away. He didn't want to see how cute Jack looked doing that. He sighed and kicked his feet up on the table. "I think I'm going to like it here…" He smiled to himself.