Act 3 Scene 1: Benvolio Left Behind

Questions for Romeo and Juliet, Act 3, Scene 1: Interview with Benvolio

Host: Hello, Benvolio. It is good to see you... well, alive, especially at this time when citizens of Verona are dying.
Benvolio: Mercution and Tybalt did not just die. They were killed, Mercutio by Tybalt and Tybalt by my kinsman, Romeo. They fought in Verona's streets, which was forbidden by the Prince, and they paid a horrible price for it.
Host: And how do you feel about fighting?
Benvolio: I do not like it when it is not necessary. Mercutio... he used to tell me that I would say I disliked fighting but find the smallest things to fight over, but soon after the last time he told me that he got involved in a fight that wasn't his to begin with and he was killed in that very fight.
Host: Do you think Tybalt meant to kill Mercutio? Or did Romeo's interference cause his death?
Benvolio: Honestly, I am not sure. Tybalt came to fight Romeo, not Mercutio, and only fought Mercutio because he challenged him. Even so, Tybalt loves fighting as much as anything, and he could have been aiming to kill. As far as Romeo, I do not want to think about what could have happened had he not come between them.
Host: How do you feel right now?
Benvolio: My two closest friends are dead and banished. I feel as if the world is a different place for me now.
Host: I see. Thank you for your time.