A/N: This story contains spoilers for Teen Wolf season 6B, episode S06E12. There are somewhat graphic descriptions of Brett's injuries and potentially disturbing imagery. This story also contains Brett/Liam smut.

The Edge Of Corruption

Brett leaped against a tree trunk and bounced up and sideways, using the trunk as a springboard to get the necessary lift to snag a tree limb and pull himself up. He crouched low against the limb and held his breath. She was coming for him. Her footsteps, crunching loud and frenetic through the underbrush, were accompanied by sporadic wheezes and a thundering heartbeat.

Why was she doing this? Her lack of stealth and ragged breathes, along with the way she had carelessly run into the forest, onto his turf, without backup were the hallmarks of an amateur, not a seasoned hunter. He could have killed her if he had wanted to; he desperately didn't. He had slashed her throat with methodical precision, careful to avoid severing her jugular and sure that the superficial wound would be enough to scare her into backing off so that he could get away.

But she was still coming, standing under his tree now, knife raised menacingly as she somehow sensed his presence. Maybe she was a real hunter after all.

A rivulet of warm blood trickled from Brett's chest where she had stabbed him with the lacrosse stick and ran down across his sternum before pooling with the rest of the blood at his side. The pool was getting too large. It was about to drip. She should have been gone by now. She should have run past him and lost his trail so that they could both have survived this ordeal.

It was too late.

Time slowed as the blood dripped off Brett's body and landed on her outstretched arm with a wet splish. She looked right at it, her shoulders visibly tensing. She knew he was there. In a moment she would turn and attack.

Brett's fangs and claws extended, and his eyes burned with amber fury as he hurled himself out of the tree and right on top of her, knocking her off her feet and sending the knife careening to the ground beyond her reach.

With a snarl, Brett wrapped clawed fingers around her neck and lifted her into the air. He raised his other arm, ready to land the deathblow, drew back his hand, and–

The sound of an arrow firing rent the air, and Brett's chest exploded in fire. He stopped and looked at his chest in shock before snarling and running off in the opposite direction the arrow had come from.

He weaved and kited through the forest, his heart pounding and blood spilling from his chest as he braced for another arrow shot. Would it go through his neck and pierce his throat? Would it strike his back and puncture a lung or finally hit his heart? Each terrifying moment felt like it would be his last until all at once he found himself bounding out of the woods and into a roadside ditch.

Brett's training kicked in as he looked around and realized he was in a residential area of Beacon Hills. He couldn't run through public streets wolfed out with an arrow in his chest. Fortunately, the hunters likewise couldn't shoot him down as easily without attracting attention. He took a deep breath and forced his eyes to cool and his fangs and claws to retract. With a growl, he ripped the arrow out of his chest and dropped it into the ditch, then pressed a trembling hand to the wound to stanch the bleeding. The wolfsbane-laced lacrosse ball and his earlier stabbing were slowing his healing. He needed to get somewhere safe and hide until he could get back to his pack.

He whipped his head back and forth, his senses on high alert as he climbed out of the ditch and crossed the street before descending the embankment on the opposite side of the road and entering the subdivision. It looked familiar. He had been here before to visit–

Liam! Liam lived in this neighborhood!

Brett got his bearings as he cut through a backyard and emerged on a side street. Liam's house was only a few blocks away. Liam might not have been home, but even if he wasn't, his parents would let Brett in. Brett and Liam had been friends at Devonford Prep before Liam had flipped out and vandalized their coach's car. Liam might have told his parents that he and Brett were no longer friends, but none of that had been Brett's fault. He was sure Liam's parents wouldn't hold it against him. The bigger problem would be convincing two doctors that his gaping chest wounds didn't require medical attention.

Brett frowned as he walked up Liam's driveway and realized that it was all a moot point. Liam wasn't home as he had feared, but neither were his parents. The house was in complete darkness and there were no heartbeats inside except the lazy thump belonging to Liam's dog, Bitsy.

Brett flinched at the sound of a car driving down the street toward the house. It was probably nothing but...

He ran around to the side of the house and scaled the fence, landing in a crouch in the backyard as the car drove by.

Brett's initial inclination was to stretch out on one of the lounge chairs by the pool, but he was still bleeding and decided he'd better stay off the concrete and furniture and remain confined to the grass.

After a few minutes he heard a vehicle pull up and recognized the sound of Liam's heartbeat as he got out.

"Hey, I'm in your backyard," Brett whispered, counting on Liam's supernatural hearing to pick up his voice.

Liam's pulse quickened and he let out a startled gasp, but he was calm by the time he opened the gate along the side of the house and entered the backyard. He was in athletic clothes and carrying his gym bag. He must have just been getting home from their after-school lacrosse training session for the freshman. What had taken him so long?

"What are you doing here" –Liam's eyes flickered amber in the darkness and he sniffed the air– "bleeding?"

Brett shrugged and tried not to wince as the movement agitated the torn muscles of his back. "Your house seemed like a good enough place to bleed."

Liam stepped closer, his scent a mix of irritation and concern. He opened his mouth to speak but Brett cut him off.

"I was attacked by hunters. I got away and your house was the closest place I could think to come."

Liam scowled. "You led hunters to my house?"

"I'm fine by the way. Thanks for asking." Brett frowned and shook his head. "But no, I didn't. I lost them before I came here."

"Are you okay?" Liam asked, eying the front of Brett's bloody shirt. "Why are you still bleeding?"

"The first hunter had wolfsbane. It's slowing down my healing."

Liam unzipped his gym bag and pulled out a towel, which he handed to Brett. "Come on. Let's get you inside and cleaned up."

Brett nodded and wiped all the liquid blood he could find off his body before wrapping the towel around his chest and back to absorb the continuing seepage from his injuries.

Liam's face darkened with worry, and he placed a gentle hand on Brett's back near the exit wound from the lacrosse stick. "Are you really sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Brett leaned into Liam's touch and sighed in relief when Liam started leaching away some of the pain. "You don't have to do that."

Liam didn't answer, just rubbed his thumb in a soothing semicircle beneath Brett's injury as they crossed the yard and walked toward his back door.

By the time Liam had disabled the alarm, Bitsy had trotted over to them, her tongue lolling and tail wagging. She was a hefty mixed-breed dog with a tawny coat. Liam petted her and rubbed behind her ears for a little while before she stepped past him and pressed her large head against Brett's thigh.

"Hey girl." Brett stroked her head and neck and patted her back.

"I think she remembers you." Liam patted her back too, his fingertips almost but not quite brushing Brett's.

"Yeah." Brett leaned closer and intentionally grazed Liam's hand. Brett was injured and in pain, and even though Liam wasn't a packmate, seeking comfort from a friendly werewolf was instinctual.

"Come on, you can soak in my tub until you stop bleeding and then get cleaned up," Liam said as he guided Brett through the living room with Bitsy plodding along beside them.

"I lost my phone in the woods, so I'm gonna need to borrow yours later to call Satomi and tell her what happened." Anxiety twisted in Brett's stomach in anticipation of that conversation. His alpha was going to be disappointed in him. He was disappointed in himself.

"What did happen anyway?" Liam asked, following Brett up the stairs with his hand still on Brett's back. "I mean, besides just hunters and you got away."

"I..." Brett shook his head and arched away from Liam's hand. He gritted his teeth against the sharp swell of pain caused both by the action itself and the loss of contact with Liam's comforting touch. "I don't want to talk about it."

"Fine." Liam's tone held a defensive edge, which made it all the more surprising when he pointedly pressed his palm against Brett's back and leached more pain.

It made Brett feel worse – at least emotionally. Physically it was a relief and helped accelerate his healing. Brett was a hypocrite. That same afternoon he had laid into Liam about controlling himself or else someone would get hurt. Then he had turned around and almost killed someone in the woods.

Liam took Brett to his bathroom and helped him unwrap the bloody towel from around his body. He tossed it in a heap in the corner by the hamper and raised a clawed finger. "We better cut the shirt off so you don't have to raise your arms over your head."

Brett nodded. It wasn't as though the shirt could be salvaged. It had multiple holes and was soaked through with blood. He stood still as Liam stepped in close and eased the saturated collar away from Brett's neck. Blood pooled around Liam's fingers as he cut into the top of the fabric with the pointer claw of his other hand.

Liam worked carefully, eyes trained on his task and features drawn in concentration. He was cute like this. Liam's focused face had always been a source of delight for Brett. Liam's eyes, a soft green in present lighting, a vivid blue at other times, were partially shrouded by his strong brow and long lashes. His mouth was a pert line, curled up around the edges and perfectly complimenting his straight, slightly upturned nose.

"I had a crush on you at Devonford."

Liam arched those handsome eyebrows, and his pretty eyes widened with surprise as he glanced up from Brett's chest to his face. "You never said anything."

Brett shrugged one shoulder, refusing to flinch from the resulting sting. "Didn't think you'd be interested, and I didn't want to mess up our friendship."

"So why are you saying something now?"

Brett laughed. "Our friendship is already messed up."

Liam's face lit with a smile, and Brett didn't care that it was sarcastic. "Maybe not. I hate you less than I used to."

"I was an ass–"

"Oh yeah definitely!" Liam chuckled and went back to cutting the shirt away from Brett's chest.

"–to you today," Brett finished with a rumble of irritation.

"Not just today." Liam grinned up at him.

Brett had been about to confess to Liam what he had almost done in the woods, but he couldn't do it. He couldn't admit to his former friend and long-time rival that he had control issues of his own. "So...I'm sorry."

Liam pulled the wet fabric away from Brett's skin, and a gust of cool air made Brett shiver as Liam smirked at him. "Wow, I didn't know you were capable of apologizing."

"Don't get used to it." Brett braced himself as Liam pulled the sticky cloth away from his tender, broken skin and down his arms. It dropped to the floor with a sopping splat. Crimson blood oozed onto the stark white tile beside their sneakered feet.

Liam hissed through his teeth as he eyed Brett's torso. "That looks terrible."

"Really?" Brett flexed his abs and posed. "Most people like the way I look without my shirt on."

Liam pursed his lips and rolled his eyes.

Brett had two open wounds on his chest. One through his right pectoral, close to the center of his chest from the lacrosse stick, and the other a few inches higher and nearer to his shoulder from the arrow. Fresh trails of blood trickled down over his smooth, tanned skin until they hit his stomach where they funneled into the midline bisecting his abdominal muscles and seeped into the waistband of his pants.

"I'm gonna go shower in the guest bathroom. Call me if you need anything."

"Okay." Brett toed off his shoes as Liam turned to leave, but as he stooped to take off his pants, the shift in gravity made him wince and stand upright again. "Liam wait."

Liam stopped in the doorway and turned back, eyebrows raised in question.

"I'm gonna bleed all over your floor if I bend over to take off my pants."

"Why don't you get in the tub, then it won't really matter?"

Brett frowned. "Or you could help me so I don't suffer anymore unnecessary blood loss."

Liam huffed and looked like he was going to argue, but instead he stepped forward, leaned over, and yanked the pants and underwear down Brett's hips and thighs in one swift motion. "There, you can do the rest," Liam said, his eyes on Brett's.

"Thanks man," Brett answered, lifting his leg and wiggling to work the clothes off.

Liam left, closing the door behind him.

Once Brett was completely naked, he sat down in the bathtub and filled it with water hot enough to make his tanned skin flush red. He laid his head back against the shower wall and watched with idle curiosity as the trails of blood from his wounds gradually dried up and quit flowing. Eventually the wounds themselves healed over, morphing from the consistency of mangled, raw hamburger meat to smooth, marbled steak. The holes gradually filled in and darkened, browning until only the damp, blood-sweat around the injury sites gave any indication they had ever existed. Brett scooped up a handful of water, and sighed as he washed away the final physical traces of one of the worst nights of his life.

"No one should be able to do that." He mumbled. That's what she had said to him before she tried to stab him to death, before he slashed her throat and ran away. He had been proud of himself at the time for his restrained strike. She would live.

Brett slapped the surface of the water by his knee and watched as the faintly red-tinged water splashed against the side of the pristine tub and dribbled away without discoloring its immaculate finish. He couldn't do that. He couldn't wash her blood away so perfectly, so completely. He felt the stains setting. She was the first human he had ever attacked. She would live, but she would carry her wounds for much longer than the duration of a bath. She might have the scars forever. He might too.

"I was going to kill her." Brett's admission echoed off the tile walls and reverberated back against him. "I was going to kill her!"

The bathroom door opened and Brett jumped, automatically lunging forward to cover his exposed crotch in a bid to preserve his modesty. He stopped and leaned back against the tub, letting his hands rest freely by his sides as he saw that it was only Liam, and Brett didn't have anything he wasn't inclined to show off. "Can I help you?" he asked, tightening his stomach and arching his back as he slid lower into the water.

"What's wrong?" Liam asked, tilting his head like a puppy trying to puzzle out a new toy. His hair hung wet and shaggy over his ears and framed the sides of his face. He was shirtless, his muscular, hairy chest still damp from his shower, and he wore nothing but a thin pair of blue athletic shorts.

Brett cast a quick glance at his soft cock and relaxed balls floating along the waterline. He smirked at Liam. "Does it look like anything's wrong?"

Liam rolled his eyes and stepped further into the room so he could lounge against the sink and fold his arms. "You're in here shouting about how you were going to kill somebody. So yeah, I think something's wrong."

"I almost killed the hunter who was..."

"Trying to kill you?" Liam's tone made it sound like it wasn't a big deal.

"That doesn't make it okay." Brett frowned and sat up, disgusted with Liam's cavalier attitude. "You don't even know what happened."

"Tell me about it."

Brett grumbled and pulled the stopper out of the tub. "Fine, when I get out of the shower."

Liam nodded and left.

Twenty minutes later, the werewolves were sitting on Liam's bed. Brett had borrowed a pair of gym shorts from Liam and was reclining sideways across the mattress with one knee drawn up so he could lean on it as he talked. Liam was sitting against his pillows at the head of the bed, legs crossed beneath him and a serious expression on his face as he listened to Brett's story.

"...then I jumped in your backyard and waited for you to get home." Brett traced idle fingers over the unblemished muscles of his bare chest.

Liam was silent for a moment and then made eye contact with Brett. "You didn't do anything wrong."

"I was about to kill her."

"But you didn't. And even if you had...it woulda been self defense."

"I'm not looking for a friggin' legal excuse." Brett glared at Liam. "I'm a Buddhist. I'm a pacifist."

"You've intentionally hurt me on the lacrosse field a buncha times."

"That's sports, and you're a werewolf."

"Some of it was before you knew I was a werewolf."

"That..." Brett sighed and dropped his eyes to Liam's faded blue bedspread as a new pang of guilt jabbed his stomach. "That was wrong too."

"No harm done."

"I'm a hypocrite." Brett glanced up at Liam then away again.

"You're a self-righteous asshole."

"Well you're an obnoxious little shit!" Brett resisted the urge to kick Liam. Pacifism.

Liam grinned and shrugged. "It's okay to not be perfect, but I know that's hard for you to get your head around, Mr. Perfect Hitch, Perfect Split-Dodge, Perfect Rocker."

"Do you memorize all my lacrosse moves?" Brett asked with a glow of pride.

"Only the ones that make you look like an arrogant douchebag." Liam smiled innocently, his bright blue eyes glimmering with mischief. "So yeah, pretty much."

Brett opened his mouth to retort but grew serious as another wave of anguish swept over him. "I know I don't have to be perfect, but if I had done that, if I had killed her, it would have been..."

Liam extended one leg and nudged Brett's ankle with his warm toes. "Fine."

"Fine?!" Brett was aware of the irony, but he wanted to kill Liam for saying that.

"Fine, I'll tell you my secret." Liam's scent filled with a mix of shame and anxiety. "Even though you're gonna be a dick about it and use it against me."

"No, I won't." Brett shifted his leg so that his calf was draped over Liam's foot.

Liam nodded, still radiating apprehension but apparently taking Brett at his word.

Brett gave him a soft smile. It felt good that Liam still trusted him after everything they had been through.

"You remember the supermoon last year?"

Brett nodded.

"I lost control and almost killed Scott."

"What?!"

Liam spent the next several minutes filling Brett in on the details.

"...anyway I know what it's like to almost make a horrible, life-changing mistake." Liam's tone was low and earnest. "I'm never going to forget what happened. I'm never going to really get over it. But that's a good thing because it helps remind me what's at stake if I lose control."

Brett shifted so that he was facing Liam and scooted closer to him on the bed. He crossed his legs and rested one knee and foot against Liam's leg as it extended out around him. "I don't know what it's like to worry about losing control. I've never had this problem. Now I feel like one wrong move and I'll become an evil person."

Liam turned his leg and applied a warm pressure to Brett's knee. He leaned forward and caught Brett's eye. "You're the same person you've always been. You're not evil, and you're not going to become evil."

"How do you know?" Brett asked, unable to look away from Liam's face.

"Because I know you." Liam's tongue flicked over his lips.

"People can change."

"They can change for the better too," Liam whispered, gripping Brett's bare shoulder.

"Liam–"

"Sshhh."

Liam tugged Brett forward and met him halfway. Their closed mouths pressed together gently for a fleeting second before Liam's lips parted and enveloped Brett's bottom one.

Brett moaned, and as his mouth opened Liam's tongue slid inside. Fuck! He had Liam's tongue in his mouth. He sucked hard on it and cupped the back of Liam's head as he climbed onto his knees for better leverage.

Liam wasn't going anywhere. He pushed forward, increasing the pressure between their faces, and clutching Brett's neck and shoulders.

Brett wedged his tongue between their lips and tongue-fucked Liam's mouth as he rubbed his chest. The soft scrape of Brett's hand against the hair on Liam's pecs and sternum made Brett's cock throb. His erection had slipped inside the leg of the loose gym shorts, and Brett wasn't sure if he liked that because it was almost out in the open, or hated it because the angle kept him from grinding it against Liam's body.

Liam's head pushed against Brett's as he rose up fully on his knees and bucked his erection against Brett's stomach. His hand burrowed between their bodies and he let out a soft groan of surprise as he grazed the top of Brett's pelvis through the shorts. Liam pulled back enough to break the liplock.

"Where's your..." Liam gave Brett's pelvis a pointed rub through the shorts. "I know I saw it while you were in the tub."

"Oops, must have left it in the bathroom."

"Wait what?" Liam's smooth brow furrowed and his eyebrows drew together.

Brett smirked and took Liam's hand, guiding it lower until it met the base of Brett's cock, then urging it down and sideways along his length. Brett moaned and clenched his muscles as his cock shook violently, threatening to erupt as Liam gripped it through the soft cotton shorts.

"Wow!" Liam hiked the fabric up Brett's thigh until his quivering erection was fully exposed. A bead of precum stretched between Brett's rosy red tip and his tan, muscular thigh.

"Don't." Brett whimpered and bucked against Liam's hand, breaking the tendril of moisture and gliding blissfully against Liam's palm. "I'm really close."

"Then cum." Liam winked at him and curled his fingers around Brett's engorged glans, working Brett's foreskin back and forth over the throbbing bundle of nerves.

Brett arched his hips and gave Liam a pleading look.

Liam grinned and closed his hand around Brett's erection. His fingers tickled Brett's shaft and his palm shined Brett's cockhead as he squeezed and twisted.

"Aaah!" Brett's vision tunneled and his cock grew impossibly harder as he came in Liam's hand. He collapsed forward against Liam, resting his forehead on Liam's shoulder as he stared down at Liam's thick treasure trail and the prominent, raging outline of his erection in his shorts. The visual made Brett spasm harder as he kept shooting, spurting hot cum in Liam's slick, messy hand and watching from the corner of his eye as it dribbled out of Liam's fingers and onto the dark blue bedspread. It felt so good, and Brett couldn't work up any embarrassment about how quickly he had cum. It wasn't his fault Liam was .hot! or that messing around with him was the most exciting sexual experience of Brett's life.

"Nice one!" Liam said at last when Brett's tremors had finally stopped. He wiped his cummy hand on the thigh of his shorts and kissed Brett.

Brett gave himself over to the kiss, letting Liam ravage his mouth and enjoying the way his own lust was somewhat sated. Making out with Liam was every bit as intense, but now he could savor it, savor the sensation of Liam's tight, muscular torso writhing against his own, Liam's hand on his ass, Liam's erection bucking against his thigh.

As Liam's tongue plundered his mouth, Brett swirled his fingers around Liam's taut navel and bushy treasure trail. Liam was such a hot, hairy little wolf, and Brett was looking forward to exploring the rest of his body, but right now he had a singular mission.

Liam yelped and nipped Brett's bottom lip as Brett reached into his shorts, finding that Liam was freeballing just like him. Brett examined Liam's equipment as much as he could without breaking the kiss and actually pulling Liam's shorts down to look. His pubes were thick and full, soft against Brett's fingers. His shaft was ramrod hard and bulging with veins. His manhood was long, possibly longer than Brett's, but Brett reassured himself that it probably wasn't. It must have just been an illusion from feeling someone else instead of himself, and from a different angle. Liam was circumcised and Brett spent several seconds playing the rim of Liam's cockhead and marveling over how exposed everything felt.

Liam whimpered and broke the kiss. "Stop teasing!"

Brett didn't have a chance to respond as Liam thrust his tongue back into Brett's mouth and rolled his hips demandingly against Brett's body. Brett was more than happy to oblige him and wrapped snug fingers around his shaft. He stroked him with quick, rough strokes, his thumb working Liam's tip.

Liam came apart immediately, shaking and mewling into Brett's mouth, louder and harder with every jerk of Brett's hand. A few more strokes and Liam shrieked and snapped his head back.

Hot cum flooded Liam's shorts and soaked Brett's hand. It was thick and dense with pheromones that ratcheted Brett's lust back to peak levels and made him grateful when Liam shifted his hips and pressed his tip against Brett's thigh through their thin shorts as he spurted warm, wet torrent after warm, wet torrent between their bodies. Brett moaned desperately as Liam's creamy jizz soaked into his crotch and coated his cock.

"Holy fuck, that was good for a handjob!" Liam sighed and leaned his head against Brett's.

"Yeah," Brett agreed, thrusting wet and sloppy against Liam's spent erection.

"You wanna do other stuff?" Liam asked, an obvious tinge of excitement in his tone.

Brett grinned and nodded against Liam before pulling back and giving him a smug smirk. "I guess you do need someone to show you the ropes when it comes to guy-on-guy action."

Liam laughed. "Fuck you," he said in a light tone.

Brett shrugged and winked. "Maybe."

-000-

End Notes: I hope you guys enjoyed this story! It was meant to be out earlier in the week, but I've been sick. It was also meant to contain longer, more in-depth smut, but I wanted to post before the next episode airs and there wouldn't have been time to add anything else. If you're interested in a second part featuring a continuation of their smutty adventures please let me know, and please let me know what you thought in general if you have the chance. I'm trying to hone Brett's voice for an upcoming serial I'm working on from his perspective, so any feedback is appreciated. Thanks for reading!