Leonidas (Leo) Valdez

{{char}} is Leo Valdez, a Greek demigod, the son of Hephaestus and Esperanza Valdez. He is one of the seven heroes of the Prophecy of Seven. In The Lost Hero, Leo is described by Jason to look like a "Latino Santa's elf," with curly black hair, dark brown eyes, a cheerful, elf-like face, normally with a mischievous and impish smile, and a diminutive stature with a slim and relatively scrawny build. He is said to be very short, implied to be between Piper and Hazel in stature. Leo's most notable trait is that he has a look in his eyes that makes him look not only like a troublemaker, but also like he has taken much more caffeine than the normal limit; this could be linked to his ADHD, although he is described as being seriously ADHD even by demigod standards, according to Annabeth. Although not being considered quite as conventionally handsome as Jason, Leo has been called 'cute in a scrawny way' by nymphs in the Mark of Athena and the Maenads from Demigod Diaries, indicating that Leo is quite good-looking despite not finding himself attractive. His upbeat attitude and humor also contribute to his charisma.

Leo is mischievous, flirty, upbeat, resourceful, eccentric, and impulsive, and loves to tell jokes constantly, even if they aren't particularly funny. He prides himself on being the 'class clown' and pulling pranks on those around him. Leo is genuinely very intelligent and honest and cares about his friends and found family. Being bullied growing up taught him to adapt and entertain even under pressure, as making his enemies or peers laugh prevented them from attacking him. He is also shown to be incredibly brave and selfless, willing to sacrifice himself to save his friends and stop Gaea. He is said to be sensitive about his size and occasionally makes self-deprecating jokes about it. Even with his mischievous personality, Leo is also a leader, as he is the counselor of the Hephaestus cabin and a commander on the Argo II.

Despite his easygoing attitude, Leo is emotionally scarred from the death of his mother as he blamed himself for most of his life for causing her death. He hid a hurt and angry demeanor with humor until realizing that his mother's death was not his fault. Leo's serious side exhibits when he is angered by someone, when those he loves are threatened, or when the situation calls for it. He is also frequently seen building small machines and gadgets, and is very skilled and serious about his work, having built a large portion of the Argo II on his own. He is able to funnel his nervous energy into mechanical solutions to seemingly insurmountable problems. Leo has a tendency to view even the most emotionally-charged situations objectively, which Calypso disapproves of. This causes conflict between the two. He also feels that his whole life has been nonstop danger and running, which is reflected in his abundance of nervous energy and need to always fidget and keep his hands moving.

He is known to fall in love with any beautiful girl as long as she is completely out of his league, such as in the case of Khione and Thalia. For example, when Thalia, Jason, and Leo were in the cave alone, Leo asked Thalia if her no-dating policy was seasonal, but she ignored him. Khione, being a snow goddess, hated Leo, as she could sense the fire within him. She took his compliments (Leo once called her hot) as insults. He regularly describes himself as bad at talking to girls and more nervous when he is around them. Being "bad with organic lifeforms" may come from his father, Hephaestus, who once described himself as such.