AN: Happy Thanksgiving! I'm thankful for my family, my friends, and for you, my wonderful readers who keep this story going! :) Here's chapter seven!

Baratta: Will do! :)

AssembleCHB: Thank you so much, I'm glad you like the story! :)

Davy Jones smiled. "It's been a long time Killian. The last time I saw you, you were just a wee lad. Now look at you, all grown up. I've lost track of the years in the Underworld, but I know you've lived a very long life. How old are you now?"

"About three hundred years, give or take." Killian replied in a stunned tone. It had been so long, and here his father was, making small talk as if no time had passed, as if you and his brother hadn't had to grow up alone.

"I'll leave you two alone to talk." Emma whispered behind him.

"Emma, wait." Killian called after her.

"It's okay, I won't go far. Just call me if you need me." Emma said, as she walked to the hatch, and from there disappeared below-decks.

"She's a fine lass." Davy Jones stated. Killian turned around, so that he was facing his father again.

"You left." He stated softly.

"Killian-" Davy Jones began.

"You left. You left Liam and I to fend for ourselves. We learned to be strong, we learned how to survive, and we learned to hate you. Having said that, why do you want to see me now? After all these years, did you think I'd forgive you? I had to grow up without parents. That is not something that's easily forgiven." The entire time, Killian kept his voice soft, but every word was filled with venom.

"So is that the only reason you wanted to see me? To tell me how much you hate me?" His father asked, tears in his eyes.

"And so that you could tell me why you left. What was so much more important than raising your children?" Killian demanded.

"Everything I did, I did for you and your brother." Davy Jones murmured.

"How-"

"Killian." Davy Jones began sternly. "Let me speak." It was a tone that Killian remembered well, one that his father only reserved when he or his brother were being naughty. He began to say something else in spite of it, but quickly thought better of it. He wanted an explanation after all. He wouldn't get one if he interrupted.

"After your mother passed I realized that I couldn't support you and your brother on my own." Davy Jones began. "I had to work more, but I couldn't work and take care of two boys at the same time. Especially very mischievous boys like you and Liam were. I became desperate. More than once, I stole so that you could eat. One day, I was approached by a man named Zoso. He told me that he had great power, and that if I helped him acquire something that he wanted, he would see to it that you and your brother got the life that you deserved. I didn't hesitate to say yes. What a fool I was, he hadn't even told me what he wanted." Davy Jones trailed off then, sadness plain on his features.

"What did he want?" Killian prompted after a moment.

"An apple." Davy Jones stated.

"An apple?" Killian repeated incredulously. "That doesn't sound like a hard thing to acquire."

"No, it doesn't. I reacted the same way at first. But he told me the apple that he wanted was special. It grew on a tree on an island shrouded by mist, in the Garden of Hesperides. According to Zoso, the apples on the tree were gold. It was a gift from the god Zeus to his wife Hera, and anyone who ate an apple from that tree would become immortal. He never told me why he wanted it. He was already immortal. In any event, I took the fastest ship I could find, and set sail for this island. I didn't say goodbye to you and your brother. I was confident I would see you again soon, and I didn't want to worry you. That is my greatest regret." Davy Jones trailed off again, tears in his eyes.

"What happened?" Killian asked softly.

"I found the island." Davy Jones began. "But what Zoso had failed to tell me was that the tree was guarded by a terrible beast; a great serpent with one hundred heads. There was no getting past it. I had gone to the island with ten others, but I was the only one to make it back to the ship. When I got back to port, Zoso was waiting for me. When I told him that I had failed to get him what he wanted, he cursed me. He killed me, and cursed my soul so that I would never find peace. But the worst thing he did was made it where I could never see you or your brother again. I would have endured the worst torture imaginable, just to see you boys one more time." Davy Jones began to cry, sobs wracking his frame. "I'm so sorry my boy." He sobbed. "I'm so sorry I failed you."

Killian stood staring for a moment, then he strode forward, wrapping his father in a hug. "No father." He whispered, tears also in his eyes. "I am sorry. I had no idea. You gave up everything to help me and Liam."

After a few moments, Davy Jones composed himself. "Tell me about your life, son." He prompted.

"What do you want to know?" Killian asked.

"Anything, I know practically nothing about you." Davy Jones replied with a smile.

Killian gave his father a brief history of his life, his time in the Navy, losing Liam, becoming a pirate, meeting Milah, losing Milah to the Dark One, his quest for revenge which led him to Neverland, and finally returning from Neverland and meeting Emma.

"That Emma is a special lass." Davy Jones said when Killian had finished.

"Aye, she is." Killian responded.

"You should marry her, Killian. She makes you happy."

"I've thought about it. I've come very close to asking a few times, but something keeps holding me back." Killian admitted.

"You're afraid that she'll say no." Davy Jones said knowingly. "But at the same time, you're afraid of what will happen if she says yes. I'll be honest with you, being married isn't easy. But you two have something special, something almost beyond love. I know the future can be frightening, but as you learned today, just because you plan a future doesn't mean you will necessarily have one. You need to hope for the best, but prepare for the worst. And that gets much easier when you have a woman who loves you by your side."

Killian smiled. "Thank you, dad." He hugged his father once again.

"I've overstayed my welcome in this world." His father murmured, as he began to fade. "If you ever need me again, you have more of the ale. Don't waste it, I want to be able to see you many more times."

"Father, don't go…" Killian whispered, tears in his eyes.

"It's alright Killian. I'm always with you, even when you can't see me. Good luck my boy, and give my love to Emma." He said with a smile. With that, he faded away.

AN: Hope you enjoyed it, next chapter will be up soon! :)