A/N: I love Until Dawn, but I really hated that regardless of what you did you couldn't save Josh, not really; sooo up popped the premise for this. I've written a couple of chapters but I'm not entirely settled on which way the story will go; there may be possible JoshXOC, there may not. Also I don't plan on this being super long, 15-20 chapters at max I think...I have checked this several times for spelling errors and such and I think I got 'em all but please feel free to point any out!

I own no characters etc. from Until Dawn, the only two that are mine are Quinn and Stuart. Enjoy...

Quintessential; adjective:

Representing the most perfect or typical example of a quality or class.

With shaking hands Quinn gripped the newspaper tightly and re-read the headline for what felt like the thousandth time. Blackwood Pines seven, safe and sound. Underneath the huge bold print in smaller writing it read: Joshua Washington still reported as missing on Blackwood Pines, the same spot his two sisters disappeared last year…

"Quinn…you ok?" Her friend Stuart asked her tentatively. He'd been watching her in concern for the past five minutes as her face gradually darkened, like a thundercloud. "Quinn…"

"He's dead." She replied shortly, throwing her paper onto her kitchen table. Stuart was still none the wiser.

"Who's dead?" He took a seat opposite her and furrowed his brow. Quinn ran a hand through her long dark hair and looked away.

"Pops." Came her short reply.

"Wait…what?! How?" Stuart scrambled for a response as she sighed deeply.

"Says in here he died helping some kids save their friend up on Blackwood Pines." She scowled, "Some good it did, the guy's still missing." Silence filled the kitchen; Stuart didn't know what to say. Was he supposed to comfort his friend? Quinn and her father hadn't exactly had a normal father-daughter relationship; heck he'd shipped her off to boarding school just to keep her out of his way.

"Hey…Quinn…" A thought had suddenly occurred to him, "If the guy's still missing…and he's alive then won't he…" Stuart left the idea hanging in the air, but Quinn understood; she'd had a similar idea as soon as she'd read the article and her initial rage subsided.

"Be one of them? Well it's only been a week so not yet I don't think." Quinn frowned, "But…if he continues to live then it's only a matter of time." Stuart's mind was racing. "And…if the police find him in that state he'll get them. And without Pops up there to keep the other Wendigo's in check who knows what'll happen to the people nearby if they decide to roam…" Stuart was chewing his finger nails by this point; Quinn suddenly shot up from her chair, making him jump.

"What're you thinking?" He asked, regaining his composure and immediately recognising the look on her face. "You look like you have a plan…"

"You bet I do." She mumbled, leaving the room; Stuart followed.

"You're going to the mountain aren't you?" He asked with a sinking feeling in his stomach.

"Yepp, but first…" She peaked her head around her bedroom door, her eyes glittering, "I'm gonna have to take a little detour."

Chris sighed as he sank into the sofa in his small apartment, the past week had been…trying to say the least; police interview upon police interview, not to mention the loss of his best friend, had taken a lot out of him. In addition to that Ash had been ringing him every evening without fail, and while before that would have been a dream come true, now she was usually crying hysterically and it took him a good half an hour to calm her down.

It was nice to finally have some peace and quiet…

Knock-knock.

Chris' eyes shot open and he glared at his door in irritation.

Knock-knock.

Glancing at his clock he saw it was 10:30pm, who would be knocking at this time?

Knock-knock.

He sighed and got off his comfortable sofa to answer the door.

Knock-knock-knock-knock-knock-

"Alright already I'm coming!" He shouted, "No need to be so impatient-!" As he opened the door he was forced backwards with such force he almost tripped over his coffee table. Two people entered; a tall, lanky blond male and a considerably shorter, dark haired female; he didn't recognise either of them. "Hey man, I've had a pretty rough week, honestly there's nothing here worth stea-!" The girl held up her hand to cut him off; her silvery grey eyes were threatening.

"We're not here to rob you; I just want to ask you a few questions." Her accent was British and her companion closed the door behind them. Chris looked back and forth between them, out of the two he got the impression the small woman was most definitely the one in charge.

"Questions…what kind of questions? What about?" He asked with a frown. She pointed to the sofa, presumably signalling for him to sit, however he stayed standing; she might have been be menacing but he was at least a head taller than her. Unfortunately when he didn't sit, she growled and made him.

"Hey Quinn, there's no need to be rude, okay?" The male objected; he gave Chris an oddly apologetic look, he too had a British accent. "Sorry about this, we've had a long flight and we're kind of on a tight schedule…"

"The 'stranger' from Blackwood Pines, what did he look like?" The female, 'Quinn', jumped straight in, ignoring what her companion had said.

"The stranger from…" Chris repeated what she had said in surprise, before regarding her cautiously, now on his guard. "What's it got to do with you?" Apparently that was the wrong answer. Quinn grabbed him by the collar and pulled him closer; he absently noted the freckles sprinkled across her now scrunched nose.

"Look you…just answer me!" She hissed.

"Quinn, calm down!" The male detangled her hands from the front of Chris' shirt and gently pushed her back slightly, she shot him a dark look but he held her steely gaze with surprising ease, as if he was used to it. "We can't just force our way into a strangers' apartment and start interrogating him! He doesn't even know who we are, has no reason to co-operate with us." He reasoned; Chris was glad to see he was considerably more reasonable than his companion.

Quinn inhaled sharply in disapproval, "Fine. My name is Quinn, this is my friend Stuart. You're Chris, and if the stranger you described is who I think it is then he's my father." Chris gaped at her, he'd not been sure what to expect but it wasn't that, "So that's what it has to do with me." She added a little viciously.

"W-whoa…" He exhaled in surprise, "Shit…okay, he was about…6ft, kinda…grizzly looking. Grey hair, blind in one eye, oh and had a scar…" Almost as if the tension was the only thing keeping her standing, Quinn' shoulders suddenly drooped before she collapsed onto the sofa beside Chris; she sat hunched over with her head in her hands and Chris wasn't sure what he was supposed to do. He glanced at Stuart, he was staring at Quinn sadly, but when he caught Chris' eye he gave him a small smile.

"I don't suppose you have any tea?" He inquired politely, Chris nodded and made a move to stand up but Stuart waved him away.

"Oh it's fine I'll make it! Would you like some?" Chris nodded mutely yet again and sat back down. The evening had taken a bizarre turn; he could say quite honestly he'd never been offered tea in his own apartment before. Stuart easily navigated the kitchen and returned a few minutes later with three hot mugs of tea. "There we go…Quinn, take this." He held the mug out to a shell-shocked looking Quinn and she numbly accepted it.

"Uh, thanks." Chris took his mug, and Stuart sat opposite the two in an armchair. "So…you're his daughter? That's a surprise…he didn't really seem the type that would have family…" He suddenly bit his tongue, he hadn't meant to sound so insensitive. To his surprise Quinn gave him a bittersweet smile.

"He wasn't." She told him, she sipped at her tea and closed her eyes, "I...I'm sorry." She looked at him uncomfortably, as if the words 'I'm sorry' were foreign to her. "I didn't mean to barge in here and rough you up I just…I needed to be certain." Chris found his ill-feeling towards her ebbing away as he regarded her tiny defeated form.

"It's…cool. No harm done…and he was your dad, can't say I blame you." He scratched the back of his head and saw Stuart was smiling at Quinn like he was a proud parent.

"Yeah well…I was still pretty rude. So, sorry." Her voice had gotten quieter and the awkwardness of her apology made Chris feel equally as awkward; a heavy silence settled over them, in which they all casually sipped at their tea.

"This guy who went missing…Joshua Washington?" Stuart suddenly broke the silence and Chris tensed little at Josh's name being mentioned, "He…well…" He didn't seem to know how to finish.

"Was he dead or alive last time you saw him?" Quinn asked bluntly, Chris choked on his tea and Stuart gave her a very disapproving look.

"Well…I wasn't the last person to see him, but I'm pretty sure he was alive." Chris managed to eventually choke out, both his British 'guests' exchanged a look and frowned.

"I guess we have to go then?" Stuart asked; Quinn nodded.

"We don't really have a choice." She replied, she finished drinking her tea and stood, "Well thank you Chris for the information…and the tea, we'll take our leave." She made her way over to the door and Stuart hastily finished his own cup so he could follow.

"H-hey wait! Why did you want to know if Josh was alive? Where are you going?" Chris sprang to his feet and quickly followed them; Stuart opened his mouth to reply but was silenced by one fierce look from Quinn. Chris' eyes widened as he realised, "You…you're going to Blackwood Pines aren't you?" He half asked, half demanded.

Quinn raised an eyebrow at him, "You do catch on quick, don't you?" She drawled, "Yes we're going there." Suddenly her eyes light up maliciously, "What's it got to do with you?" Chris groaned as his earlier question was used against him.

"Look…Josh was…is my friend, if you're going back to save him…then I want to come with you!" His declaration was left hanging in the air; Quinn snorted and then started laughing leaving Chris stood there gradually turning a deeper shade of red with every giggle that left her lips.

"C'mon Stuart." She patted her friend on the shoulder and they carried on leaving.

"W-wait! I'm being serious I want to come!" They stopped and Quinn turned to him with the same terrifying look on her face she'd given him earlier, but he stood his ground. "Josh was my best friend okay? The fact we basically abandoned him…I just…man…" It had sounded much better in his head.

"Quinn…" Stuart said her name in that same reasonable, even tone he'd used before, as if he was trying to pacify a small child.

"Oh fine!" She cried in exasperation, throwing her hands up in the air. "You can come, but if you die it's on you." Chris' grinned stupidly, her ominous words bouncing off him. "I'll have to get you a gun…" She murmured thoughtfully. Chris suddenly stopped grinning, as if he realised what he'd so eagerly agreed to. "What's the matter blondey?" She asked him with a malicious grin, "Reality kicking in?" Chris stubbornly stuck his chin out and shook his head.

"No!" He declared, falling into step with her, "I was just thinking…I know some others who'd want to come with us. To help." Quinn looked at him curiously.

"Is that so?"

"Yepp. Definitely." He hoped.

"Chris have you lost your damn mind?!" Mike asked him seriously. Quinn had sent Stuart back to their hotel to pack and Chris had texted Mike, Sam and Ash asking to meet up at a nearby internet café that was luckily open at 11pm; upon arrival, and after some very curious glances in Quinn direction, Chris had explained to everyone who she was and what was going on. He had thought these three would be the only ones willing to go back with him. Questioning Chris' sanity had been Mike's first port of call, and the others seemed to feel similarly.

"Chris…Chris you can't go back!" Ash cried, "We barely got away, you can't go back, you can't!" She was working herself up into 'hysterical mode'.

"Chris…I miss Josh too, but we don't even know if he's alive." Sam's voice was a lot gentler than the other two, but she didn't seem up for it either.

"But…last time Mike saw him he was! Wendigo-Hannah recognised him and dragged him off! If she was going to kill him, she would have then and there." Chris reasoned desperately. Mike and Sam looked uncertain, but Ash remained completely unmoved.

"No, it doesn't matter. He…he betrayed us, the sick games he played with us! After all that you still want to go back and rescue him? You could die Chris." She grabbed his hand from across the table and looking into his eyes pleadingly.

"Look…what he did was wrong, I'm not denying that." He sighed, "But he was my best friend for years Ash! Plus he was off his meds, it wasn't entirely his fault." Ash let go of Chris' hands, "And…if he's still alive down there I can't just do nothing. I won't abandon him to the same fate as Hannah or Beth." Chris finished with a determined look on his face and Ash looked away.

"I'm not going back." Ash told him, shaking her head, "I won't do it."

Quinn watched the conversation with rapidly dwindling interest, her silvery gaze sizing up each person round the table. She was mildly relieved when Ash said she wouldn't go; Quinn knew the watery-eyed red head wouldn't last five minutes back there. The other two looked torn.

"I…okay, I'm in too." Sam told him, Mike looked at her incredulously and Chris grinned in triumph. "I know it's crazy Mike but Chris is right. If he is alive he's in danger of either dying like Beth or…turning…like Hannah." She looked down sadly and Chris turned to Mike.

"Well fuck it all, I'm in." He cried in exasperation, throwing his arms up in a way very reminiscent of Quinn's earlier display. "If I die down there I'm gonna haunt the shit out of both 'o you." Quinn clapped her hands together loudly, making them all jump, as if they'd forgotten she was there.

"Well isn't this wonderful. Now that we've got that sorted I've got a question for you all." They looked at her in interest, "How are you with a gun?"

"I'm a pretty decent shot." Mike replied fairly.

"I'm…okay." Chris shrugged. Quinn's gaze settled on Sam who looked a little uncomfortable.

"I…can climb pretty well!" Quinn made a mildly disgusted noise and rubbed her temples, it had been a very long night and with the haphazard group assembled in front of her she was fairly certain they'd be lucky if they made it out alive, never mind Joshua Washington.

"Fan-fucking-tastic."