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1.
Sam drew his machete. Dean managed to stop him in time, but the damage was already done. Between Dean’s constantly harping on Sam for doing what Dean had encouraged him to do and let him stay dead and build a life for himself, and Dean lying and running off to meet with someone else, and that someone else turning out to be a vampire after everything Dean had said about monsters being monsters and once they become killers they can never be anything but killers which is why his friend Amy had to die…
Benny was lucky that Sam was not, in general, a violent man. Dean could restrain him and talk him down. He could not, however, convince Sam that Benny deserved a chance and that they should be friends.
2.
It was not Sam’s finest moment, although he would argue that based on the information he had, having a spy on Benny was the right call. All he knew about Benny was that the vampire was a vampire, he had killed before, and that he’d promised Dean he wouldn’t kill anymore. He could at least admit that his choice of spy was not a good one – Martin Creaser was somewhat unstable. Now instead of living the comfortable retired life, Martin was dead, and it was at least partially Sam’s fault. He hadn’t been the one to kill him, that was Benny, but it was self-defense, and Sam was the one who had put Martin in the situation. Benny did what he had to do to protect himself and his kin.
Now Benny probably hated Sam as much as Sam hated Benny, and for better reason.
3.
Sam had never expected to see Benny of all people in Purgatory. Thinking about it made it make sense – Benny knew the exit Dean had used, and if anyone could talk someone into dying for someone they hated, it would be Dean. Still, there remained the little fact that Benny hated Sam, and if he didn’t, he should.
The plan made more sense as they approached the gate. Benny wanted to stay, because he’d fallen off the wagon. “You were right all along about me, Sam,” he said. “I didn’t belong up there.”
“Maybe you could’ve if you’d had proper support,” Sam said. He held out his arm. “Wanna give it a try?”
“What support are you thinkin’ I’ll have? Dean’ll choose you every time, so it’s not like he’s there for me, and….”
“Me and Dean. If he doesn’t have to choose between us, he can be there for you.”
Benny thought about it the rest of the way to the portal, and instead of staying to hold off anyone coming for them, he took the knife for the spell.
4.
It wasn’t the most natural of transitions, but it wasn’t the worst Sam had ever experienced, either. Benny turned out to be every bit the loyal, steadfast companion Dean had said he was, and the advantages of his strength and speed more than outweighed the drawback of his occasional need for blood. He’d adapted mostly to animal blood, with donated human blood on standby for emergencies, and it worked out well for the most part.
Which is why Sam didn’t react immediately when he found Benny with his fangs dropped, dripping with blood, and a body at his feet. “Benny?”
“This ain’t what it looks like, Sam, I swear.” Benny glanced down at the body. “I mean, it is, kinda, but I swear there’s a good reason for it.”
“I’m listening.” Sam put his machete down, kicking it away from him so that Benny would feel more comfortable. “What happened here?”
“She was attacked by a ghost. Managed to do enough damage that she wasn’t gonna live. I managed to fight the ghost off, but it got me good, too. I’d show you, but, well, the blood healed it up so good there’s probably not a scar.” Benny still lifted his shirt, and Sam could see the very faint line that would have bisected Benny’s spinal cord. “She was dying and knew it, she knew what I was, and told me she’d rather go out doing something good for someone. She told me to drink until I was healed, and if that didn’t leave her enough, well, better in me than on the ground, to her. I’ve seen enough death, I knew she was right about her chances of makin’ it to tomorrow, so I agreed to it.”
Sam knelt, checking the body. Like Benny, he’d seen enough wounds and death to recognize that with her injuries, they were right. She would never have made it out of the room alive. “Fair enough, Benny. Enough of your story checks out that I’m willing to believe you on the part that you can’t prove now.”
Dean, naturally, didn’t even bother to listen to Benny’s explanation. “You killed a woman, Benny. Broke your word. Get the hell out of here.”
“Dean…” Sam started to protest.
“He killed a person, Sammy. What does it matter why?” Dean turned and stalked out. Sam, with an apology to Benny, followed.
5.
Dean finding out that Sam was sneaking out to see Benny… did not go over well. To say the least. There was quite the blowup, in which Sam covered several excellent points.
1. Dean did the exact same thing, sneaking out to help Benny behind Sam’s back, and went off on Sam for being upset about it. (“At the time I still believed his bullshit that he wasn’t a killer!” “It’s not bullshit, Dean, which you’d know if you’d let him explain!”)
2. Benny had wanted to stay in Purgatory and only agreed to come back because Sam promised that he and Dean would be there to help Benny stay on the rails by giving him a place. (“Shoulda left him there! He killed that woman!” “No, she was as good as dead already, Benny just let her death have some purpose.”)
3. If Dean wasn’t just pissed, if he really believed that Benny was a killer – then why was Benny still walking? Why hadn’t Dean killed him right then?
Dean had no answer for that one. He just told Sam to shut up, this was over, Benny was a killer and not to be trusted. Sam argued that he had at least as much reason to trust Benny as Dean right now, since Dean acted like he knew it all and Sam couldn’t be trusted to make a decision on his own. When Dean started listing all the mistakes Sam had made, Sam threw that right back in Dean’s face. “Thought you said it was all forgiven, that we were square. When we were watching Bobby say goodbye to Rufus and you realized how much it sucked that they never were about to make up after Omaha.”
Dean still didn’t have an answer. He walked away, and Sam went to find Benny.
And 1
When Dean found Sam and Benny the day after that fight, Sam and Benny braced themselves for a fight. After all, last they’d heard, Dean thought Benny was a killer who couldn’t be redeemed, and that Sam’s judgment couldn’t be trusted. Finding his little brother in bed with a monster – again – was sure to set him off.
And yet… “Shit, sorry, bad timing there. I’ll… just wait outside until you both have at least some pants on?” He actually left, leaving a very freaked-out Sam looking at Benny helplessly.
Benny shrugged. “Not sure what to say, cher, other than he don’t seem like the type to care whether I have my pants on when I get back to Purgatory. If he were here to kill me after all, he wouldn’t’ve left.”
“Yeah…” Sam found his pants and a T-shirt. That was enough dressed, he figured; it was just Dean out there. Once Benny was fully dressed, he opened the door to find Dean scrolling something on his phone. “We’re dressed.”
“Good.” Dean came in and walked up to Benny, throwing his arms around him. “You want a swing or two, you got it. I sure as hell deserve it. Me freaking out about you and Sammy getting so close is no excuse not to at least listen to you. I was scared to lose you both… and then I made my worst fear come true. If I didn’t get my shit together and hunt you down, you’d both be out of my life now, wouldn’t you.”
“Yeah… we would,” Sam said. “I’m guessing you freaking out about losing us is why you couldn’t have warned either of us that this was happening? Because last night kinda surprised me.”
Dean nodded sheepishly. “Yeah, sorry about that. This fool’s been half in love with you since we were in Purgatory, and once we sorted out the bullshit that happened because I was too chickenshit to introduce the two of you properly, it didn’t surprise me that he fell the rest of the way, or that you fell for him. He’s exactly your type… dangerous as hell but tempered by a real goodness in his heart, sensitive and willing to listen and give advice or help you out, never knew you to be into a dude before but doesn’t surprise me a bit.”
“So you’re… okay with this?”
“I’ll get there,” Dean admitted, making a face. “Certainly better than the alternative of one or both of you being gone, and you two make each other better.”