A/N: Thank you for the awesome reviews. And thanks to my beta: Leeese!

Disclaimer: Don't own OTH

Chapter Fifteen

Pardon My Past

Haley opened her eyes and smiled to herself. She still couldn't believe that she was married to Nathan. Or that Brooke had allowed it to happen. She kept thinking that it was all a dream. But as the hours passed, she realized that it was real. She turned to see that Nathan was already awake and was smiling at her. "What are you thinking about?" she asked him.

"My beautiful wife," Nathan replied as he leaned in for a kiss. They shared a sweet kiss before he pulled away. "And how we can start our life together without anybody getting in the way."

Haley sighed. "I wish that was true, but Brooke won't give up until she gets me back. You and I both know that."

Nathan gave her a comforting smile. "That's not going to happen. Brooke knows that she can't control you or order you around anymore. And even if she does try and take you back, she'll have to get through me first."

Haley wasn't amused by Nathan's confidence. "That's what I'm worried about," she replied. "She killed your brother. What is going to stop her from killing you too?"

Nathan knew that she had a point. "If I'm not mistaken, you are the one who is supposed to kill her," he reminded her as he climbed out of the bed. "We just don't know when the prophecy is supposed to happen."

Haley stopped him right there. She sat up straight in the bed and looked at him. "Whoa, nobody said anything about killing her." She had never heard anybody say that. She had just heard that she had to defeat her. "How the hell am I supposed to do that anyway? It's not like I can dump water on her and watch her melt. Or burn her at the stake. Besides, I am a pacifist."

"Well, the magical world hasn't had peace for centuries," Nathan replied as he put on a shirt. "And I don't think that the mortals are doing any better with their problems." Haley was about to respond when he continued. "And besides, you will be using your powers."

Haley gave him a disbelieving look. "May I remind you that the only powers I have are premonitions?" she told him. "So I doubt that they can help me much during this big battle. Especially since I have them while I'm sleeping."

"You could have other powers," Nathan pointed out. "You just haven't tapped into them yet."

Haley was tired of arguing with him. "I'm not going to kill her, Nathan. I can't. I won't," she protested. "There has to be another way."

Nathan sighed. "You're right. I don't know what I was thinking. If you kill her, you'll become evil just like she did. Even though it's in your blood, that doesn't mean you will become evil." Haley turned to him and gave him a confused look. Nathan didn't even notice. "You can bind her powers and make her a mortal."

"What do you mean that it's in my blood?" Haley demanded as she pushed the covers off of her and stormed over to him. Nathan then realized that he had made a mistake. "Is that what Brooke meant by telling me the truth about my mother?" Nathan was about to answer when Haley continued. "My mother is an evil witch?" she exclaimed.

"You aren't evil," Nathan said, not answering her question. He could see that Haley was getting upset. He tried to calm her down. "Just because your mother is doesn't mean you are."

"How do you know that?" Haley exclaimed angrily. "Nathan, I was born to an evil witch. Her blood runs through my veins."

"Well, that doesn't mean that your dad is an evil warlock," Nathan pointed out. Haley wasn't convinced. "I'm sure if we just talk to Whitey, then he can explain the whole story. After all, he does know your birth parents."

Haley gave him a look. "Exactly. How do you know that we can trust him?"

"Well, you did say that you knew him from somewhere," Nathan pointed out. "So if you know him, I'm sure that he's someone that we can trust. Otherwise, Brooke and Peyton wouldn't have looked so pissed when he showed up at the wedding yesterday."

Haley couldn't argue with that. She then thought for a moment. "You're right. In fact, they knew each other. How can that be if my mother is an evil witch?" she asked him. "I didn't think that good and bad witches crossed paths that much."

"They don't unless it's a good or bad witch turning over to the other side," Nathan replied.

Haley raised her eyebrows. "An evil witch can become good?" she asked surprised. She had heard about a good witch becoming evil, but never the other way around. She didn't think it was possible.

Nathan nodded. "But it is rare."

"Why would an evil witch turn over to the side of good?" Haley asked. She only had to think for a moment before coming up with the answer. "True love."

Nathan nodded in agreement. "So maybe your mom fell in love with a warlock and had you. They bound your powers and gave you to your adoptive parents for protection so you wouldn't be raised evil."

"But if my mom was good, then she wouldn't need to hand me over to my adoptive parents in the first place," Haley protested. "She would have raised me. Or at least come back and visit me. I never got a phone call or letter or anything like that from either her or my father. There was no contact with me whatsoever. Explain that one, Nathan." Haley didn't let him respond. "I know that there is such a thing as closed adoption, but this is the magical world that we're talking about. There are no closed adoptions. I don't know who put me with my adoptive parents, but I do know it was to protect me from my evil mother." She then walked into the bathroom and slammed the door behind her.

As she started to get ready for her shower, she couldn't help but think about her birth parents. She had known that she was adopted ever since she was little. However, her parents didn't tell her much about her birth parents. Only that they loved her very much and giving her up was the hardest thing that they had had to do.

When she was eighteen, she had tried to find any information she could about them. Even though she loved her parents, she wanted to get to know her birth parents as well. However, the trail soon ran cold and she gave up. Now that she has discovered that her mother was an evil witch, she started to worry that she might become evil as well. She didn't want anything to happen to Nathan or his family. She knew that she had to talk to someone about it. And she knew exactly who to talk to.

After taking a hot shower, she quickly dried her hair and put her clothes on. By then, she could smell breakfast. She quickly finished getting ready before heading downstairs to the kitchen. Nathan gave her a small smile and she smiled in return. There was an awkward silence between them before Haley spoke. "Nathan, I'm sorry about yelling at you."

Nathan shook his head. "No, it's my fault. I keep forgetting that you've been Brooke's slave for three years. So it's understandable that you think things differently. But things aren't always what they seem."

Haley knew that he was referring to her birth mother. "Well, we'll see what the Witches Council says. I need you to take me over there so I can talk to them again." Nathan looked at her surprised. "Isn't that why your mom and Victoria stopped the meeting? Because they found out that my mother is an evil witch?" she asked him. She had figured it out earlier, but she didn't want to say anything to him. However, she felt that it was now necessary. "I want to know what would have happened if they didn't let us marry."

"It doesn't matter because we're married now," Nathan said. He didn't know why Haley was so interested in pursuing this. "We should just move on and start our life together."

Haley shook her head. "I can't until I know that I'm not going to become evil like my mother," she replied.

Nathan let out a sigh. "Alright. I'll take you after breakfast. But if you ask me, you're not evil."