The Sunspire obvious

Though when he was silent it was never uncomfortable for her, she did wonder what he thought as she did with no one else but perhaps her sisters. More than that, she cared—this, too, was reserved primarily for her mirror images alone, and her mother and father as well. Anyone else and their feelings were never considered; Hydra was selfish, and in a dog-eat-dog world where she was fed nothing but the finest things, the princess was a gluton who shared her spoils with a select few. Hydra believed in herself, in her family, and it was for them she did all that she did. This was no mystery; all that she had done thus far in her life was thanks to, or because of, them. She was a girl who had never been told no to; she was a girl who harbored her fathers ability to hold ones own convictions and her mothers aloof, calculated mind. So it was strange for her to consider anyone else but for those she shared had been given her surname from, or shared her face... and this was something in the moment she thought on, trying to figure out its meaning. 

There was a way she could find out for certain. The strangest sensation of all she had ever felt was when she was nearest to him, like now—she could hardly think straight! It was as pleasant as it was unnerving to her, who always felt in control and confident in the things that she did. Hydra mulled over what he must be thinking—of course, agreeing with the wise things she had said... but had he figured out where it was he wished to be, now? Even her hints had been selfish; she wanted him to come to realize that his heart was no longer with the place that had once been the Vale, but with his brother, Rannoch. That way he could not escape her company, that way she could discover, really, what it was she was feeling. 

When he spoke again, Hydra found herself beaming. His best friend! Yes, perhaps he was that for her, but different than her sisters somehow. Though they would forever be The Most Important, the way she regarded Rian was strange and fond in a way that was entirely separate from her twins. I could have come to visit might have been the message she clung to, had another word not appeared on her female radar: relationships. Hydra felt Alya near her, even though she was not, and she paused in her step. What would Alya do? It was Alya who was good at these sorts of things. 

Relationships, she echoed, her ears perked. Innocently, she fell again into step alongside him, and with much interest she asked him: do you have much experience with those...? Relationships—things Alya and Lyra had dreamt of, but she had never applied to herself. But maybe these were the things her sisters spoke of, and meant. These strange feelings... and a flash of jealousy whipped through her, hot and sobering—who would he have gained this experience with, to know he was no good at them? What did this mean? Was he in one?