beast (bist)
-noun
1. the crude animal nature common to humans and the lower animals
2. a cruel, coarse, filthy, or otherwise beastlike person

characters/pairings: Candy

A/N: Oh how I enjoy this pairing. It's also a little shorter than my usual ficlet. But heavier on the seriousness and profundity, if you can call it that, haha. I tried.

She was the beauty. He was the beast.

If hate took the form of a person, Cartman would be it. Everyone knew that.

Everyone also knew that Stan was lucky to have someone like Wendy. She was pretty, smart, an activist, and she knew when and how to speak her mind.

Despite the contrast, Wendy would watch the beast from afar. Each time she had the chance to observe him at the corner of her eye, he would either be picking on someone or be getting picked on himself. The harassment was so much a part of him that keeping a safe distance from his wrath was understandable.

So on a day like this one when she noticed Cartman at the corner of her eye, approaching her and her boyfriend, Stan, she disregarded the beast completely. She let the insults get thrown at him and his "big-boned" physique. She let Kyle punch him. She let Kenny abandon him for the other two. She let her girl friends laugh at him. And most vitally, to her at least, she let herself walk away.

But she just couldn't bear it whenever it was him getting picked on! Sure, he deserved it sometimes. But unlike most people, Wendy saw through Cartman's cruel demeanor. She understood why Cartman had to bully people around. Because Cartman was obviously different from everyone else, because he was an easy target, because Cartman probably knew his own flaws, he just had to rag on other people.. kind of as a way to protect himself.

It was as simple as that. Yet everyone saw him as a beast.

"Hey, Wendy," Cartman would come up to her randomly one day. "What'd you think of the lesson today? Pretty lame, huh?" he would ask.

At least he tried. But dammit, why did he have to try? Every time Cartman tried to get a hold of Wendy, she'd feel guilty.

Because she would be with Stan, or Bebe, or someone else that hated the beast. Which was practically everyone. Being in the midst of someone else that hated him would make her put on an aloof front and say something back to him like, "Yeah.. lame. See you later, Cartman!"

And the next time she'd see him it'd be the same.

And even if Stan or Bebe or someone else wasn't there, they would forever remain a strong presence in her conscience.

Ugh, if it weren't for other people! If only she hadn't cared.

Thinking if Stan or her friends ceased to exist, Wendy cringed at the thought of giving the beast another chance. Would she and Cartman have to be the only two people in the world in order for her to sit comfortably with her feelings about him?

Shaking her head as if it would rid her of her innermost affections, Wendy began to hate herself. She realized that until she accepted the truth—and it would take a hell of a lot of willpower to do—she could only continue to walk away from Cartman. Just like she probably would the next day. And the next.

Because she was the beauty and Cartman was the beast.

Or was it the other way around?