A/N: So this drabble is based on a scene where Chiyo wants to go to the zoo to see some pandas (it was Episode 17 I believe.), and it never happens! So it's my duty to write about the zoo trip! Of course, Sakaki and Kagura are coming along, but Yomi's not coming because she's in Hokkaido.

It was a cool winter morning near the train station, and Chiyo is waiting for her friends. Yesterday, she called Tomo and Osaka to asked them if they want to go to the Ueno Zoo to see some pandas, and they say yes. Now, Chiyo has to wait for those two to show up.

"What's taking Tomo-chan and Osaka-san so long?" Chiyo worried before she sees Tomo waving at her, along with Osaka, Kagura, and Sakaki.

"Yahoo! We're here!" Tomo shouted as she, her fellow Knuckleheads, and Sakaki walk towards Chiyo.

"Kagura-san, Sakaki-san, I wasn't expecting you two to be here." Chiyo said, "Why you're here?"

"Tomo was living in my house when you called her, so she told me about the trip," Kagura answered, but Sakaki remains silent as always, remembering what happened yesterday.

The day before...

Sakaki was relaxing on her bed when her phone was ringing. She then picks it up.

"Sakaki-san!" Tomo said over the phone.

"Yes?" Sakaki responded.

"Chiyo-chan called me. She said that tomorrow, she, Osaka, and I are going to Ueno Zoo to see some pandas!"

The word "panda" echos throughout Sakaki's mind, after all, she likes cute things and pandas are extremely cute. She dropped her phone, frozen by the revelation.

"Panda..." she uttered before she picks up her phone, "Tomo, I'm going!"

Present-day...

"Panda," Sakaki muttered.

"Um, okay," Chiyo said, "Anyway, our train to Ueno Park is almost here, so we better get going!"

After one train trip and stroll, the girls finally reached the Ueno Zoo. Chiyo then takes a map of the zoo out and shows it to her friends.

"Now everyone, I planned out a path that'll not only let us see all of the animals but also go through the zoo in a short amount of time," Chiyo explained before Tomo grabs her map, crumbles it into a ball, and throws it into the trash can.

"Tomo-chan, why did you do that?!" Chiyo scolded.

"Chiyo-chan, we don't need no planned paths to explore a zoo," Tomo said, "We need to follow our instincts! Be the animal!"

"I like bein' a sea slug!" Osaka blurred out, They're nice 'n slimy."

"I didn't suggest literally being the animal, Osaka!" Tomo shouted.

The five girls now entered the zoo, though Chiyo noticed that Sakaki's gone. "Sakaki-san, where did you go?"

"Sakaki's already at the panda exhibit," Kagura said, pointing her finger at the tall girl in front of the giant crowd.

Sakaki was in blissful heaven. She was able to see the panda doing cute things, and now she wants to take a picture. She gets out her camera, focuses on the panda, and... *CLICK*.

Tomo photobombed. Sakaki's not pleased, jumping above Tomo and took another photo of the panda.

After that little fiasco, the girls are at the raptor bird exhibit, all in awe at the Steller's eagle's ginormous wingspan.

"You know what, that eagle's so big that Chiyosuke will be snatched!" Tomo said.

"Eh?! Why?!" Chiyo whimpered.

"Ya are so small 'n tiny that an eagle that size will snatch ya away," Osaka explained, pulling Chiyo's football-shaped pigtails in the process, "Not even yer flyin' pigtails or Mr. Tadakichi will save ya now."

"But who will save me?" Chiyo asked.

"Your father," Sakaki spoke, "Your father will come flying to your rescue."

"And those eagles won't like the taste of human flesh!" Kagura added.

Chiyo sighed, knowing that while friends can be a little mean, they are still her friends

The next exhibit the girl visit is the Hokkaido bear exhibit.

"I wonder what a Hokkaido bear looks like?" Osaka said.

Tomo then pulls out a picture of her as a 10-year-old hugging a Hokkaido bear cub with a cross-shaped scar on its left eye. "This is Fuwa, the zoo's Hokkaido bear, and my archnemesis."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, I thought Yomi's your archnemesis," Kagura pointed out.

"Yomi's more of a frienemy to me," Tomo clarified, "But Fuwa, oh he's different. He growled at me whenever I lay my eyes on him," she pauses and gulps, "And now that 6 years have passed, he's going to use his strength to squash me!"

"Look, Tomo," Kagura said, "If that bear is going to hurt you, I going to fight it!"

"Thanks, Kagura," Tomo said, hugging Kagura in the process.

Then, the now grown and big Fuwa woke up from his bear nap, having his glare on Tomo, but he didn't roar at her at all.

Next up, the girls are going into the nocturnal house, which made Sakaki excited because she can take photos of the leopard cat inside. But when the girls entered, the house was so dark that chaos and confusion ensues.

"WAH! I can't see where I'm going!" Tomo shouted.

"That's because we're in the dark, moron!" Kagura retorted.

"Osaka-san, where are you?" Chiyo called.

"Don't worry Chiyo-chan!" Osaka said, "I'm grabbin' on yer pigtails, but looks like they shrunk."

"Osaka, those are my boobs you're grabbing!" Tomo screamed.

"Oops, mah bad."

At the seal exhibit, Sakaki was checking on the photos she took in the night house, hoping if she took a picture of the leopard cat. Thankful, there is a photo. "Finally," she said to herself, "I took a photo of a cat."

After the little break, the girls walk over to the west side of the zoo, where they see some animals from Africa and enter the small mammal house. Sakaki is keeping her hopes high since the small mammal house has a Pallas cat. She finally finds the exhibit, takes out her camera, focuses on the sleeping Pallas cat, and... *CLICK*, she got a photo.

"Today's my lucky day," Sakaki softly spoke, "The cats didn't run away from me."

At the zoo's gift shop, Sakaki is looking at the plushies when she sees some zoo-exclusive Neko Koneko plushies. She grabs the leopard cat, Pallas cat, and panda Neko Koneko plushies and takes them to the cash register. After the shopping trip, all five girls were smiling, but the one who is smiling the most is Sakaki, who finally got some pictures of cats.

Endnotes: So Sakaki's suffering with cats has ended (well, when it comes to taking photos of cats, petting a cat, not so much). Next drabble, Sakaki has a dream of her and her friends having a dinner party with Chiyo-chichi, so check it out.

So read and review!

Note: I don't own Azumanga Daioh.