Well, here it is. Finally. So sorry it took so long! It's been sitting on my computer for months, half done,but I could never quite seem to get around to finishing it. Tell me what you think, and I might just make an effort to get the next one up quicker...

Chapter 4: Matt's Forehead

The end of that day's classes found Jeremie in his room, lying on his bed and thinking the day over. It had been so strange... the sudden arrival of Matt, his peculiar abilities, his story. His forehead. Yes, out of all of Matt's oddities, his forehead was the strangest. Ulrich was convinced he had seen the mark of Xana there, but Jeremie had yet to see it for himself. Matt had never once removed his hat after lunch, so Jeremie never had the opportunity to check for the mark. Jeremie had also noticed that after lunch no one had had any mysterious headaches around Matt. He had been very quiet, and seemed subdued, but if Xana was involved, there was no real way to tell for sure...

"Jeremie!" His thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a familiar female voice coming from his computer.

"Oh, hello, Aelita! It's really good to see you!"

"Yeah, its good to see you, too, but you seem to be really excited considering I just saw you last night in the Xana attack," Aelita pointed out.

"Yeah, well," Jeremie blushed furiously, "It's nice to see you when you're not being chased by monsters."

"Well, that's true," Aelita smiled, and nodded.

"So, Aelita, what's up?" Jeremie said, more seriously. "Any Xana activity?

"No, I'm fine... Just lonely, I guess..."

Jeremie felt that if he blushed any deeper, his face would melt. Maybe today wouldn't be so bad after all. This could more than make up for Matt... "Well, I suppose I could keep you company-"
Knock, knock, knock.

"Damn! Who could that possibly be? Ulrich, Odd, and Yumi know not to bother me when I go in here alone-"

Knock, knock knock.

Jeremie sighed. "Who is it?"

"Your new roommate," answered an all-too-familiar voice.

"Oh, no," Jeremie whispered, eyes widening.

"What is it, Jeremie?" inquired Aelita.

"No time now, Aelita! Hide! I'll contact you later!" Aelita nodded, confused, and her window winked out of existence. Jeremie hurriedly spun his chair around to face the door. He took a moment to collect himself, then called, in a falsely cheery voice, "Come in, Matt."

And in he came. Or rather, in he stumbled. Matt was burdened with a large, borwn, tattered trunk, stuffed to bursting with his belongings. He staggered backward into Jeremie's dorm, pulling the enormous trunk, and heaved it up onto his new bed. Matt stood for only a second longer before collapsing next to his trunk.

"You don't really realize," Matt wheezed, "How far it is from the Principal's office to here until you have to drag that around."

Jeremie forced a smile, then got up to shut the door.

"I'll get it," Matt wheezed. Jeremie turned to him, about to tell him he could take care of it, only to see Matt lazily flick his wrist. Jeremie was confused for about a second, because that was how long it took the door to swing shut.

Jeremie stood there, stunned. Matt was telekinetic? He didn't expect this... If Matt really was an agent of Xana, that could be very, very bad...

"I didn't know you were... could do that," Jeremie said, attempting to sound conversational, but at the same time trying to control his racing heart.

Matt gasped, a look of exaggerated shock on his face. "You mean I've never told you in all the-" here Matt checked his watch, "Seven hours I've known you?!? What kind of a horrible friend am I? I mean, a good friend would tell you all of his deepest, darkest secrets right away," His voice was dripping with sarcasm, but it was clear by his wide grin that he had meant it as a joke.

"So if that was your 'deepest, darkest secret,' why did you tell me at all?" Jeremie retorted, slightly stung.

Matt sighed. "Well, a couple of reasons. One, we're alone. Two, you already knew I was psychic, and three," Matt shot Jeremie a small smile, "I love showing off."

Showing off? Jeremie thought. That really doesn't sound like Xana. But then again, it wouldn't hurt to be sure...

"Why do you always wear your hat? It's not sunny in here or anything, and, come to think of it, I don't know if it's even allowed in school. Why don't you take it off?"

Matt frowned slightly at this. He sat up and stared Jeremie right in the eye. "Well, it's kind of embarrassing..." His voice trailed off, and Jeremie was surprised to see him go red. This wasn't Xana-esque behavior! He had expected a slightly more violent and mysterious answer, something along the lines of "Why does it matter to you, insult?!? Just drop it, and you won't get hurt."

"What could possibly be so embarrassing that you have to wear a hat to hide it? Anyway, I won't care. You're probably hot under that thing. Just take it off," Jeremie reasoned, and he badgering was rewarded. Matt sighed, and slowly removed his hat. Jeremie gasped. There, printed clearly on Matt's head, was the mark of Xana. That hideous, eye-shaped emblem that had made his life, and the life of his friends so difficult... and that had kept his love away from him. Jeremie wanted to hit it, to break it, to destroy it once and for all, but then –

"HA!!!" Matt cried. "I KNEW you'd think it was ugly!" Jeremie was brought back to Earth with a bump as Matt crammed his navy baseball cap back onto his brown hair. He shook himself, then, before his brain was over the shock, muttered "Huh? Think what was ugly?"

"This stupid, ugly birthmark! It's so weird! It's like a tattoo or something, and if you are trying to run from someone, especially someone whose been studying, examining, and experimenting on you for years, that is NOT a good thing to have," Matt said quietly, shuddering.

"You mean," Jeremie said, mind still reeling, "You have no idea what that is?"

"No," Matt replied, now sulky. "Why, is it something special?"

"Wait right there," Jeremie ordered, and dashed out to get Ulrich, Yumi, and Odd, leaving Matt in a state of complete confusion.