Hope is someone that Noel can admire from a distance. It's a two fold type of attraction. The great Academia Director is a mix of admirable traits. He is intelligent, having devoted much of his life to the academy with the hope of getting Vanille and Fang back. But also, the Director is handsome and a talented fighter. Well, he was. That was the thing that had confused Noel back in 10AF. When the other had shown up with a boomerang of all things to help fight. But Serah seeing his look of utter disdain at such a weapon had pulled him aside to explain that Hope was a magic user. A mage.
Or well, he was. Like Noel, Hope had become a fighter at a young age. His mother had died in the purge and he had become a l'cie. Since the powers bestowed on l'cie were supposed to make them live up to their potential, Hope had possessed the greatest magical abilities of them all. His boomerang was the barest minimum of his fighting capabilities.
And no, Noel was not intrigued by that at all.
Hope was pale, like snow and a comforting presence. Like a candle or a low fire. There to be around but not to touch. Those brave enough to touch him, always did without permission. Alyssa, for instance, who touched Hope at will. Usually against the older scientist's wishes considering his reactions.
The older man's hair, naturally silver was one way that immediate attention was attracted. But so were his eyes. Narrow and filled with irises the color of the ocean that Noel had seen when he'd fallen into New Bodhum all that time ago. He was a little shorter then Noel but he guessed that didn't matter because in many ways the other was smaller then him. A smaller build in general.
For Hope, Noel is an enigma that he wants to examine. After his time as a l'cie, he'd become more inquisitive, more out going, although that was relative. And more importantly, more receptive to people. Noel was someone from the future. A desolate future that Hope wanted to avoid but a future nonetheless. The younger man (and how would one calculate their ages?) was taller, broader and tan in the ways of people who lived in places without shade.
Studying and thinking about Noel was far more then a pastime.
Noel, Hope had noted, was not shy around others but often more silent. It had taken him time to figure that out, thinking that he wasn't comfortable with people. His own admission that he was the last human ever in his time caused that to make sense. But no, it was about speech patterns. While they all spoke the same language, due to the fal'cie. Noel wasn't use to people just talking. For him talking was a necessity and thus speech patterns were not as liberal or fanciful.
A skilled fighter, he was trained well with in the ways of hunting and fighting. Trained to guard the seeress of Paddra. Which made Hope want to talk to him. From everything that he knew about the Farseers... Was that somewhere along the line the Yuel's must have gone into hiding. Which would have made sense considering the Fal'cie's schemes. But the re-founding of the culture.
Hope often stopped his thoughts around there. He might have been a scientist, but he remembered what it was like to be an outcast. Something to be used and discarded. He never wanted Noel to feel used by him. Maybe he had academic interests in the future. But new friend or old, he wouldn't hurt his friends ever.