Child-like characters?

[Nezerius]

The whole Thancred/Minfillia shipping I think has more to do with their interactions in 2.0. He doesnt come across as being all that much older than her by any substantial margin, nor does he look it. For me at least, I got the vibe is was some early - mid 20 something free spirited playboy guy who acted teh clown but came through in a pinch, where Minfillia was more a 19-22 YO serious no nonsense type with a soft side. Thancred never struck me as being a father figure for her, or that Minfillia saw him that way, atleast not in 2.0

Thancred is actually 32 years old in ARR, and probably still is, due to the whole time bubble thing in lore. I think Minfilia is around 22 years old in ARR, but the Encyclopaedia Eorzea only mentions when she first experiences the Echo (at around 17 years old) so her actual age depends when she formed the Path of the Twelve. (Edit: Completely missed the first sentence that mentions her current age as 27) I'd say that's at least old enough to be sort of an older brother figure, with how much he wanted to protect her.