It was late one Saturday afternoon when Draco Nidhoggson was faced with an unexpected challenge. It was on a whim that he and his mate had decided to open a club for furs that had certain needs, and due to the rising popularity of free spirit, he had seen more people in the last three hours than he could ever remember seeing in one day. “Please tell me we’re nearly done” Draco said, looking back at his mate Dave who was holding a parchment list that stretched to the floor. The folf looked over at his beloved wolgon and let a half smile twist his muzzle. “Only one left love, but he doesn’t seem to be here. He didn’t come when we called” Getting to his feet, Draco walked out from the main interview room to the corridor, which had doubled as a kind of waiting area. Just as his mate had predicted, the room was completely devoid of any physical beings, be they mortal or otherwise. “I guess he decided not to turn up …” the wolgon said. Judging by his application, the young man had seemed like such an interesting character. “Eager to please, always with a smile” had been some of the words that he had seen. When all was said and done, he couldn’t wait around for people to turn up; all he could assume was that he must have had a better offer. He turned to walk back into the room, but before he could walk through the open space, something caught his eye on a stool by the door. It was a cardboard box, and upon its surface were a few words in scrawled permanent marker. Mr Draco Nidhoggson, Niflheim Paradise Picking up the box, the wolgon held it against his ear to see if it was contaminated. To his surprise and slight disappointment, there was no danger detectable. Sighing, he walked back into the room, placed the box on the desk and pulled apart its flaps. “Is this some kind of joke?” he said, once Draco could see its contents. Curious, Dave looked inside the box as well, and his expression soured. “Why would someone send you something like that?” he asked. Frowning, the wolgon reached into the box and took out the item. It was a golden oil lamp, styled like the ones he had seen in the markets, and pantomimes from certain areas of the world. Thinking of this, Draco examined it all over, trying to find some kind of message. With a burst of flame from his nostrils, the wolgon decided to put it back in the box and try to find out where it had come from. But before he did that, he decided that he would do what the sender had failed to do, and that was to clean the object before they sent it. Grabbing a handkerchief from the table, Draco rubbed the lamp carefully, being sure to get off as much dust as possible. To the surprise of both the folf, and the wolgon, no sooner had he begun to polish the object, than thick purple mist began to pour out of the spout. Dropping the smoking vessel onto the table, Draco and Dave watched in both horror and amazement at what was happening. After a few seconds, the purple vapour began to pull itself together and formed into a golden wolf, who wore a golden lined red jacket, an emerald pendant necklace and two golden anklets on his arms. Instead of legs and feet, purple smoke connected him back to the lamp beneath a turquoise sash. The newcomer stretched, and turned to face the other two men in the room. “Greetings Master. My name is Ryder and I am so glad you found me. Am I too late to apply for the job?” The folf and the wolgon pulled their jaws from the floor. Draco went over at looked at him from every angle, getting a quizzical look from the golden lupine for his troubles. “Is something wrong Master?” “You’re … You’re a genie?” These were the only words the wolgon could think of to say. “Last time I checked I was” the floating wolf said with a smile. Draco went and picked up the lamp. It felt slightly lighter in his hands now, probably because the magic it held was outside of it now, not inside. “If you were inside the lamp, how did you get here?” he asked, not sure to believe the expected answer. The genie gave him a smile. “To cut a long story short, my last master was a volunteer at a club similar to this one, and when I saw the advert online, I decided to post myself to you once he’d made his last wish” Dave sat on the desk, and tilted his head. “But how will you be able to help us, you’re stuck in the lamp until someone makes a wish” Ryder’s eyes lost their sparkle, and he looked down at the floor. “That’s why I wanted to come here. I was hoping if you accepted me, you would use a wish to set me free” Alarm crossed both of the non-magical creature’s faces. They had heard many stories of what had happened when powerful magic was released onto the world, so they would have to tread very carefully if they considered his request. “If we did, what could you do for us at the club?” Dave asked. “If you freed me, I’d still have basic magic, nothing earth shattering. But enough to do simple spells, to grant small requests and that kind of thing. I could serve the drinks and food, and if need be I can clean the place in a flash” To prove his point, Ryder clapped his paws. There was a whirlwind of sparkling mist and when it cleared, the entire room was as clean as a new pin. Even the stains from certain encounters had been scrubbed from the floor. Looking around at the room, Draco fumbled the lamp in his hands. It was a very tempting offer, and he seemed like a nice guy to have around. He turned to his boyfriend, and one of his ears bent down, showing his uncertainty. “What do you think sweetheart?” he asked. Dave was still a little cautious, but if his wolgon wanted to give him a chance, he wouldn’t refuse him. “It’s your choice love” he said, with a trusting glance. Certain of his choice, Draco turned to face the wolf genie, and raised his lamp to just above his chest. “Genie, I wish for you to have your freedom” The wolf looked astounded, and after several seconds, he had clapped his paws. Purple smoke surrounded him, and the two golden cuffs snapped from the genie’s wrists and fell to the floor. As soon as they made contact, the cuffs rusted away and fell to dust, as did the lamp in Draco’s hands. In a flash of light, the smoke was gone, and the newly free wolf remained. Ryder had legs once more, covered by white pantaloons, and his expression looked both excited, and delighted beyond measure. With a bound, he leapt into the wolgon’s arms. “Thank you so much!” he said, and tears of joy leaked from his eyes. Surprised by the reaction, Draco wiped the tears away, and gave him a gentle kiss. “You’re welcome sweetheart” he said with a smile. But his expression weakened when he heard the jealous growl of his boyfriend. Putting the free genie on the desk, Draco pulled his folf close and gave him a kiss. “Easy tiger, you know I’m the only one for you” he purred, and licked the mating bite in his lover’s shoulder. Dave blushed, and nuzzled his soulmate to his chest. “Sorry love, I get a little jealous sometimes” The wolgon smiled, and licked his mate’s nose. “I know you do, that’s why I love you” Ryder felt a little awkward about being in the middle, so he crept over to the door. Now that he was free, he wanted to enjoy himself a bit. Before he could reach the knob, he felt a warm paw on his back. “Going somewhere” growled Draco. It was full of lust, something that Ryder had yet to truly experience in his eternal life. “You set me free, but you didn’t say you wanted me. So I’m just gonna go, and find somewhere who’ll take me” The wolgon whimpered, and pulled him closer. “You were hired the minute I heard your beautiful story” he said, and in a second, he had clipped something to Ryder’s vest jacket. It was a small badge, with the logo of the club emblazoned upon it. Also on it was a single word, waiter. “You want me to serve customers?” Ryder said, slightly offended. “Only if you want to, no one’s going to force you” Dave said, before his hyperactive mate could bump in. The wolf thought it over; he loved to help people, that hadn’t changed because of him being free. And actually being paid for giving people what they wanted would be nice for a change. “That would be great, as long as you can give me somewhere to live. As you can see, my former home disappeared” Ryder said, pointing at the dust that used to be his lamp. Both the folf and the wolgon laughed. “I think we have just the place” Draco said, and before the wolf could blink, he was back in the sexy hybrids arms and carried down a hallway and into a small but modest room that was barely decorated, but had a undeniable sense of home about it. Letting go off his new employee, the wolgon walked over to the door. “If you need anything, me and Dave are down the hall on the left” he said with a wink, then left the wolf to get used to his new place. Ryder looked around, and used his now limited magic to make the room feel more like home. He made the bed similar to the one he used to have back in the lamp, and several of the furnishings were from that era as well. Lying down on his newly conjured bed, the now free genie sighed. He had his freedom, the one thing he had dreamed of for centuries. And now he was going to be a waiter at a club that catered to the desires of every gay man in the country. Add that to the two gorgeous owners, and Ryder knew that his new job was going to be interesting, to say the least.