Journey to the Heart

This story begins sometime around 2007 and follows many of the major events of the show up to the present. Some details may be changed a little to suit my purposes but I will try to keep things as close to the way they were on the Soap as possible, please forgive any inconsistencies.

This is set not long after Georgie died when Spinelli first began to fall for Maxie. Jason and Elizabeth are currently trying to figure out their relationship and Sam is with Lucky. I'll only include other characters, as needed for the plot but the story won't focus on them.

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the inhabitants of Port Charles, but the original characters belong to me.

Chapter 1

"Oh really, this is just great…" The young woman sighed as she passed by the same building for the third time in an hour. It was her first time out of the apartment that she had just moved into in Port Charles and had been walking for hours in her exploration of the city; now it was dark and she was hungry, tired, and without her older sister as a guide she had become hopelessly lost. She sighed heavily again and sat down on a nearby bench to consider her options. She could always call a cab to take her home or something but there was still the fact that there was only the bare minimum of food in the refrigerator and she wasn't the best cook anyway. 'Okay fine,' she thought, 'I'll just have to eat out tonight and work on getting groceries tomorrow. Now I wonder where would be a good place for a late night snack 'round here…' Rising from the bench, the young woman took in her surroundings, her mahogany-brown hair whipped around her face in the slight breeze. She spotted a figure on another bench and decided to ask his help, normally the stubborn girl hated to ask for directions but after wandering around aimlessly for half the day she was willing to deal with it.

Marilyn cautiously approached the young man who sat slightly slumped over on the bench and hoped that he wasn't asleep.

"Um, excuse me… sir?" She asked gently, trying not to startle him. Despite her tone, he still jumped slightly, having not heard her approach, but he recovered quickly and his eyes slowly slid up to meet hers. Her breath caught in her chest and she hesitated for a moment, mesmerized by the overwhelming sadness and dejection held by the incredibly beautiful gray-blue orbs. "Oh…um…" she stammered a little as her mind snapped back into focus, he blinked at her curiously. "Sorry to bother you, but you don't happen to know of any good eating places around here do you?" The man closed his eyes or a moment before answering.

"Kelly's diner is in this proximity and it holds a special place in the Jackal's heart for its convenient availability of service especially when an emergency supply of barbeque chips and orange soda are of necessity. However, I suppose the diner itself does not manufacture those items, but my good friend and mentor does have a taste for the soups and salads that are made there."

This monologue almost seemed to occur in one breath and the girl merely blinked at him for a moment before smiling bemusedly at the rather longwinded answer to her question.

"Oh… ok thanks." Feeling his services were no longer needed, the young man resumed his slumped over position on the bench, with his head cradled dejectedly in his hands. The young woman watched him for a moment debating what she should do next. "Hey" she said suddenly, "Forgive me if I'm being nosy but… are you all right? You look like you've seen better days."

"No the Jackal (she assumed he was speaking about himself at the moment) is not alright, he is consumed with woe and the utmost self – loathing. " He sighed and closed his eyes again. She watched him with a look of sympathy in her eyes.

"Wow that does sound awful, but you know what I've found to be a good cure for most problems?"

"What?"

"First is a sympathetic ear and second and most important…" Her face took on a serious expression before cracking into a slight smirk as she continued "…a generous helping of ice cream. Maybe if you show me this diner, we can talk." He regarded her with a guarded, yet hopeful, expression.

"But you don't know me, surly you have better things to occupy your time than to listen to the ramblings of this pitiful excuse for a figure of manliness."

"Hey, sometimes strangers make the best listeners; I reserve the right to be completely objective." She smiled encouragingly and offered her hand. He hesitated for a moment before finally grasping it and allowing himself to be pulled to his feet. "Come on, let's go." She stepped back and allowed her companion to take the lead as the two started off toward Kelly's.

"I'm Marilyn Seaver by the way."

"Damian Spinelli aka the 'Jackal: Ace of Cyberspace' at your service." Marilyn laughed softly as she fell into step beside him. Port Charles certainly housed some strange people all right.