Sayaka dashed through the hallway with speed, her white cape fluttering behind. As she prayed for the safety of the child, she could not help wondered if there was such a child among the people she saw, for she could only recall Ib as the only one.

[i]"She had probably just arrived,"[/i] she surmised. [i]"She must be so frightened and confused..."[/i] With these thoughts clouding her mind, Sayaka picked up her pace.

When she finally burst through the archway separating the gallery from the hall, she saw a little blonde girl on the ground bawling her eyes out, and similar to Ib, her hair was adorned with a pink flower. Sayaka noticed how hard the girl was crying, and that her whole tiny body was shaking.

Sayaka's face softened up as she patiently trod towards River with light steps. She was reminded of another innocent girl who had also shed painful tears, though with a much softer mewing. She remembered having to fight off the schoolyard boys who were bullying the little pink-haired girl, before meeting dearest friend she would ever have.

[i]"Don't bully Madoka!"[/i]

"Hey... it's okay," Sayaka spoke slowly as she squatted herself down to River's eye level, and with a gentle voice, in hope she would not startle the vulnerable little girl. When her hand reached for her quivering shoulder to comfort her, she noticed a familiar instrument on the child's back, and a deep sense of nostalgia hit the teenager. "Do you play, little girl?"

A wide grin spread across Sayaka's cheeks as she awaited an answer, and she could not help tearing her gaze away from River and back onto the violin behind her. A charming boy in a smartly-dressed tuxedo flashed in her memory. Just a brief flash, containing more sweetness than the bitter taste she had once affiliated the boy with.

"I would love to hear you play it," she continued, turning her earnest eyes back to her. But right then, she unwittingly rolled her pupils to her side and caught sight of a blurry object standing near the hallway. Combined with the presence she had felt ever since stepping into the room, particularly the same presence she had figured to be one of the many inhabitants in this structure, she realized that she had been secretly followed. Nevertheless, she remained silent for now. "There's a theater not far from here. Do you want to play your violin there, little girl? I'm sure the others would love to hear it as well."