You could tell right from the beginning. From how he was before he met Penelo, or even after he had the pretty girl to distract him. You could tell by the way he laughed with him. Larsa was always looking for him. The way Larsa insisted on going with him that he liked the boy. The way he blushed like a child, even more than with Penelo. The way he fought even harder with him watching, and laughed at his teasing. The way pretty Larsa smiled so sweetly, or healed him so quickly that you could tell he adored him. You could catch the hastily hidden looks at his body when they stopped to camp or at streams. You tell from the pink flush of embarrassed questions about things he was too young to know that Larsa didn't want Penelo at much as him. You could see that Larsa wanted Van. At least Balthier thought so.