Cardcaptor Sakura: The New Trials (Wish-luv)

Chapter 35: It Must Rain First

“Why did I agree to do this in the first place?” Sakura despaired, pacing up and down the beach after the 20 couples had finished their introduction. Now, they were waiting for the instructions for the contest to begin. “This will be so humiliating! I can’t do anything in front of hundreds of people, broadcasted on TV, with Syaoran out of all people!”

“You can quit if you want to,” Miho suggested. Linking her arms with Syaoran, she stated, “I’ll take Sakura’s place anytime.”

Patting Miho’s head, Syaoran replied kindly, “Sorry, I’m not into this silly contest stuff myself. But if I have to do this with someone, I prefer Sakura.”

Tomoyo smothered a smile. 
  
 

The MC then shouted into the mike, “The Best Couple of Japan Contest is in form of a Pentathlon, (penta=5) meaning five events will determine the best couple! In the next two days will be held the sandcastle building contest, the obstacle course, the talent show, the scavenger hunt, and the questionnaire! The first three contests will be held today, and the last two will be held tomorrow.”

“And now, presenting Day One’s challenges of the Best Couple of Japan Contest,” the MC took a breath. “Today will consist of three contests out of the five in the Couple Pentathlon. First, involving the creativity of the beach is the sandcastle building contest! Second is the thrilling and challenging couple obstacle course! And the third and final contest for today will be held this evening—the talent show! After each contest is completed, each couple will be assessed on a one to five scale, five being the highest and awarded to the best in the category, and 1 being the lowest. Do not be discouraged if you score low on one of the contests held today, for if you do well in the others, it will make up for it. By the end of the day, those with 10 or higher out of 15 points will then pass on to the fourth event, held tomorrow! Good luck to all of you, for by the end of the day, not all of the original twenty competing couples will remain!”

Erika snapped. “The first day is simple then! All we have to do is get 10 points out of 15 points by the end of the day and we pass! Of course there is no doubt that we will get much higher than that, right Aki?”

“Right,” Aki replied, smiling.

“Well, I won’t say it’s exactly simple,” Tomoyo corrected. “I heard from previous contests that hardly half the contestants last by the end of the day. But of course you all will do fine.”

“This whole thing is like a process of elimination,” Eron noted. “The best couple is the one who survives at the end of the five events in the Pentathlon.” 
  
Wrinkling her nose, Sakura commented, “That sounds so… well, like a survival test.”

“Well, life is about surviving, isn’t it?” Eron asked, shrugging.

“No. It isn’t,” Syaoran replied, shortly. 
 

“And, in the 15th Annual Best Couple Contest, awaits the first contest of the Pentathlon: the sandcastle building contest! We thought we might get in the mood for the beach this year!” the MC did a ridiculous little hula dance. “Each has exactly one hour to complete a sandcastle! Be original and creative!”

“The first contest is building a sandcastle?” Syaoran asked, rather dumbfounded staring at the buckets and spades in front of them, and the vast stretch of silky white sand. Their “land” was marked by cones and a number tag with “20” on it. It was high noon and the sun was blazing high above them. No signs of the rain clouds forming earlier that morning during the couple introduction was present.