Alm from FE Echoes (for the character ask game!!)

Thank you for the ask :D I'm always lookin for a good excuse to ramble about echoes :')

-How I feel about this character: A wonderful boy who deserves the world !! Honestly, I love how he was the classic nobody-thrown-into-the-hero/leader/ruler-role trope, but he's written very normal, and not like a larger than life hero. He's confused, scared, angry. He cries, he makes puns. He has to make tough calls but he makes them. He leans on others, and he inspires others. He's very clearly a kid just doing his best, but his best is enough and it's beautiful! 

-All the people I ship romantically with this character: I do only see him with Celica! I think some of their relationship had wonky writing (rushed meeting time, weird argument) but it doesn't stop them from having potential for a very beautiful and healing relationship postgame. They're good for each other and understand the other like no one else would. (I do think Clair crushing on him is sweet, but I’m too obsessed with what she’s got with Gray too actually ship her and Alm.)

-My non-romantic OTP for this character: Rip, I know this is where I'm supposed to say one of the childhood friend villagers, but my trio biased answer is that I really love the mentoring relationship he has with Lukas. He grew up surrounded by all the loud personalities of Ram Village -- it makes me happy seeing him with the patient, stable guidance of someone who actually understands this insane new world of war and nobility that Alm was just thrust into.

-My unpopular opinion about this character: I... don't think he was right, in the balcony argument. (I know it's for the story and there'd be no game without it lol) but I really think Celica had the only valid point of "let's not start a war and at least look for a peaceful solution first." I wish she had gotten more credit for having an equally righteous solution, rather than Alm’s war plan being the only one that worked. 

-One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon: Just some more closure, honestly. He got to react a bit to killing his father, but we don't see any type of release (much less closure) after killing Berkut, nearly losing Celica, and killing the gods. It would have been satisfying to give him that kind of emotional attention after such an intense finale, but I understand why it was better just to move on to the kingdom celebrations haha