A/N: Thank you for the awesome reviews! And thanks to my awesome beta: Leeese! Haley's secret will slowly be revealed soon.

Disclaimer: Don't own OTH

Chapter Seven

Power Outage

Haley was sitting down lost in thought. She suddenly came back to reality as she heard Nathan's voice asking if she was okay. "Yeah, I was just thinking. Is there any way to get a person back from the dark side once they go there?" she asked Nathan and Karen.

Karen nodded as she asked, "You are familiar with the fairy tales of Sleeping Beauty and Snow White?"

"The real versions or the Disney versions?" Haley asked her.

Nathan looked at her surprised. "You know both versions?"

Haley nodded. "Yeah, the Grimm versions may be a little gruesome, but they are interesting to read. So you are talking about true love's kiss?" she asked Karen curious.

"Well, it's true love that usually breaks the spell," Karen replied.

"Then how come it didn't work with Brooke?" Nathan asked her with a frown. "Why couldn't Lucas help Brooke?"

Haley frowned. "What are you talking about? Who's Lucas?"

Karen and Nathan exchanged looks before turning back to Haley. Karen was the one who spoke up. "Lucas was my oldest son." Haley immediately noticed how she used it in the past tense. "He and Brooke were deeply in love. He was devastated when he found out the truth about what she was doing with her powers. He tried to help her every way he could. He tried to get her to bring her back to our side by the power of their love." There was then a short pause. Haley could tell that the next part of the story was going to be hard for her to tell. Nathan swallowed hard and looked somber as Karen took a deep breath before she spoke again. "During a confrontation with Brooke, he was killed. She didn't even show any remorse or guilt. That's when we knew that we had lost her completely."

"So true love doesn't work all the time?" Haley asked in dismay as she looked at Nathan. She could tell that he was upset.

Karen shook her head. "No, true love is the most powerful thing in the world. It can break any spell or curse." There was another pause and Haley could tell that there was a 'but' coming along. She was right when Karen continued. "But it is harder to do it once a witch or warlock turns evil. Lucas did the best he could, but he just couldn't do it."

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked," Haley said, now feeling a little guilty that she had mentioned anything. She hated that she had brought up bad memories for them.

"No, it's good that you know," Nathan replied as Haley looked at him. "After all, we're friends. And friends should know about more about each other, even the painful parts."

Haley nodded in agreement. "Yeah, they do. But all this still doesn't explain why Brooke is keeping me alive."

"We're still working on that," Karen told her. She tried to give her a comforting smile as she spoke.

"So in other words, Haley will have to return to Brooke today?" Nathan asked his mother in a disappointed voice.

Karen gave him a firm look. "Hey, you're lucky I managed to block Brooke's magic on that bracelet. That wasn't easy."

"How long will the spell last?" Haley asked her.

"It will protect you as long as you wear it. If you take it off at any time, then the spell will wear off," Karen told her. She then added, "And make sure Brooke doesn't see it."

Haley nodded. "I promise."

After spending the entire day with Nathan and his family, Haley knew that she had to return home. She hated to leave them. Yet, she knew that she had to. She knew that if she didn't go back, then her punishment would be even rougher than it already was.

She unlocked the front door and tiptoed into the foyer. She quietly shut the door before she heard Brooke's enraged voice from a distance. "Attic now," she demanded furiously. Haley quickly made sure that the bracelet was hidden under her sleeves before heading upstairs to the attic.

Haley took a deep breath as she walked into the room. The bracelet had worked so far because Brooke hadn't sent her goons after her. Of course, Haley had a feeling that Brooke knew all along where she was and knew she would come home eventually.

"You called, Brooke?" Haley asked Brooke, who was standing over her large spell book.

Brooke just glared at her. Haley knew that she was pissed off. "May I remind you that you weren't allowed off the property today?" She then pretended to think for a moment as she walked closer to Haley. Haley started to get nervous as Brooke started circling her. "It makes me wonder what made you want to sneak out." She then snapped her fingers and the note Nathan had sent her appeared in her hand. "Could it be this?" she asked as she raised her eyebrows.

"That's private," Haley protested. She shouldn't have been surprised though. Brooke always managed to snoop around when she thought she was hiding something. Haley had forgotten what it was like to have privacy.

"You know better than to hide secrets from me, Haley. After all, it's part of our little deal," Brooke reminded her. "Now since you were gone all day, I've had plenty of time to think of the perfect punishment for you. But I don't want to punish you until I've learned how much Nathan has told you about me."

To her surprise, Haley started to speak. "You want to know what Nathan told me? Fine. He told me that you used to be part of his coven. But then, you started to use your powers for evil." She managed to refrain from mentioning Lucas.

"What can I say? Being evil is so much more fun especially the curses and the killings," Brooke replied with a sinister smile. "In fact, I know just the perfect curse for your punishment."

Haley just rolled her eyes. "What it will be this time?"

"It's something new that is similar to Nikki's last punishment," Brooke replied as she tried to use her magic to tie Haley up so she could use the curse that she wanted on her. However, she was surprised when nothing happened. She tried again and there was still no movement from the chair and rope in a corner of the room.

"Your magic must be down," Haley said as she tried to keep a straight face. She didn't want to give herself away.

Brooke gave her an icy look. "My magic is fine. It must be you. Nathan put a spell on you to block my magic, didn't he?"

"I don't know what you are talking about," Haley replied as she crossed her arms. "Now if you excuse me, I'm going to bed."

She started to head out of the attic when Brooke immediately stopped her. "Whoa, you're not going anywhere until I find a way to get whatever spell Nathan put on you off you," Brooke said in an angry tone.

"Try all you want, but it won't work," Haley replied. "Because there is no spell on me."

Brooke glared at her as she used her magic to close the attic door and lock it. "As you can see, there is nothing wrong with my powers. So since I can't trust you to stay in your bedroom, you will stay in here until you tell me the truth or I figure out the right spell. And until you do, you won't have any meals. However, I know that I can't control your bathroom urges." Brooke then snapped her fingers and a small bathroom appeared in a corner of the attic.

"You forgot something. I need a bed," Haley replied.

Brooke gestured her to the couch. "That's what you will use for now. Get some rest. You are going to need it for when you do receive your punishment." She then grabbed her spell book and snapped her fingers one final time. Then she was gone and Haley was alone in the attic.

After putting the spell book in her bedroom, Brooke walked downstairs to the first floor and was stunned to see Nathan sitting on her couch in the foyer as if he owned the place. She glared icily at him. "If I wasn't welcomed in your house, what makes you think you are welcomed in mine?" she asked him.

Nathan just smirked at her. "You're in a foul mood. It can't be because of me, is it?" he asked her in a casual tone as he taunted her.

"What the hell did you do to my prisoner?" Brooke demanded angrily. She wasn't in the mood for games.

"What's wrong? You can't have your fun with her the way you usually do with your little spells and curses? Good because she's tired of your fun. It's time that she has her own fun. She has been your prisoner for far too long," Nathan said. He could tell that he was getting on her nerves. But he didn't care. She had been a problem for his family for far too long. And so far, this was the only way he could get back at her for what happened.

"You know, I thought I told you to stay away from Haley or else," Brooke replied as she raised her eyebrows at him. "So I'm warning you for the last time, Nathan. If I hear that you are around Haley again, Haley will be the one who will get hurt. Got it?"

"Don't you dare touch her," Nathan exclaimed angrily as he got up from the couch. He had a look of fury on his face as he glared at her.

Brooke looked at him hard before she smirked. "I know that look too well. You are falling in love with her, aren't you?" she asked him. When Nathan didn't answer, she knew that she had had her answer. "You are too cute, Nathan. But you and I both know that it won't work out between you two. So you might just forget about her and move on."

"I can't and I won't," Nathan replied firmly. "There's nothing you can do to stop me from seeing her."

Brooke didn't say anything as he snapped his fingers and disappeared from her sight. She suddenly sensed another presence nearby. "You can come out now, Chris," she called out annoyed.

Brooke turned around and saw Chris standing there with his usual smirk on his face. "Can I do anything for you?" he asked her eagerly.

"See if you, Julian and Owen can find out what spell Nathan put on Haley," Brooke replied.

Chris was disappointed. He made it more clear when he asked, "That's it? Can't I torture him instead?"

"You can if he ever comes near Haley again. But for now, you're going to have to settle for detective work," Brooke replied firmly.

"What about my reward?" Chris asked with a smirk.

Brooke rolled her eyes. She knew exactly what he wanted. "If you give me the information I want, then I'll think about giving you Haley for an hour or two. After all, she is what humans call grounded."

"I'll see what I can find out," Chris replied before he disappeared.