Cardcaptor Sakura: The New Trials (Wish-luv)

Chapter 62: Designs in Crime

  

"Sakura-chan, can you do me a favor?" Daidouji Tomoyo said.

The two sixteen year old girls sat in Tomoyo's bedroom. Unlike most girls her age, Tomoyo had a six-room chamber that occupied the entire second-floor east wing of the Daidouji mansion. First was her parlor done in dainty pastel colors and ivory furniture, then her study with her high-tech video-editing equipment, the next her design room, another room was a media room with a private theater system, and yet another compartment was set aside as her walk-in-closet with a whole subsection of her self-designed wardrobe for her best friend Sakura. Tomoyo's bedroom was the size of the entire Kinomoto's upstairs and done up all in lace and silk like a princess' room.

Kinomoto Sakura, sitting crossed legged on the paisley print bed, stared up at her best friend. In all the nine years they had been friends, Tomoyo never had needed Sakura for anything. If there was ever an opportunity for Sakura to repay Tomoyo back for all the times she had been there for her, she would gladly take it. "Of course. What is it, Tomoyo-chan?"

"You know I've been preparing a portfolio for a design contest for some time now," Tomoyo began.

Sakura nodded, feeling rather guilty because she had been so occupied with other thoughts over the past months that she really hadn't noticed what Tomoyo had been up to.

Taking in a deep breath, Tomoyo continued, "Well, I've been selected as one of the five finalists for the Japan Young Designer Contest."

"That's awesome! Congratulations!" exclaimed Sakura. Even Sakura had heard of the Young Designer Contest—it was a launch pad for many innovative young designers held only every three years. Winners of the contest often continued on to very successful careers in the fashion industry. When had Tomoyo been preparing for this contest? Right. There was the time when Sakura had been avoiding everybody at the beginning of the school year. And then Syaoran came back, and Sakura had tried to completely isolate herself from anything that reminded her of him. And then she began spending more time with Eron because he was virtually the only person who would never voluntarily reference Li Syaoran. Guiltily, she squeezed Tomoyo into a big hug.

"Thank you," Tomoyo said, her eyes brimming with gratitude. "I really didn't think I would make it this far, so I haven't told anyone yet I've been selected—you're the first."

"Isn't the contest geared towards students in design school, usually in their twenties?" asked Sakura.

Tomoyo replied, "I checked—there wasn't any restriction set forth in the guidelines and applicants do not have to be design students. It said specifically, 'any aspiring designer under the age of 29 is eligible to enter.' So, I decided to just enter instead of waiting another three years until I'm in university."

"So, what were the requirements?" asked Sakura. "It's an awfully competitive contest, isn't it? All the top designs school students in Japan enter."