#Leo deserves better

[1800-lemon-boy]

Friendly reminder that Leo Valdez, a kid whose mother died in flames, being born a rare child of Hephaestus who can summon fire out of his hands.

<33

[spaceafy]

NO SHE LOOKS SO SAD

[heelstylerollins]

I swear if they rename Hikuleo as Talla Tonga I'm suing WWE

[ct-tupperware]

Kix + caring immensely about his brothers

[doc-killjoy]

i love Percy so much but him telling the rest of the Argo II crew basic fucking horror stories about Nico was really fucked up, especially since the stories were so bad that they shaped Jason’s whole view of Nico as a person and made everyone scared of him.

[thetimetraveler24]

Sometimes I think about how people rank Jason as their least favorite because he’s “such a bland character with no personality”, but was he even allowed to have one in the first place?

He’s two years old when Lupa guides him to Camp Jupiter. He’s brought up to be the perfect soldier, the perfect Roman, the perfect hero. He doesn’t know life outside the legion. He’s the son of Jupiter, he has to be great. If he’s not, he’s a failure and a disgrace. If he is then he’s still not the best because there so many other heroes who did it better than him so he has to keep trying harder and harder even though no matter what he’s never going to be good enough because the moment he slips up he’s no longer the perfect hero.

The few times he actually tries to do something he wants, he’s only cut down. Changing the 12th legion to the 1st legion? No, you can’t do that. It’s tradition. You’re wrong. That’s stupid. Joining the 5th cohort? Why would you join those losers? You’re only hurting yourself. You could be great if you join the 1st cohort instead like a good Roman boy.

So why would he try to do anything that cultivates his identity? Why would he try to do anything that brings him joy if everyone around him is just going to suck it right out?

He has no best friends at Camp Jupiter. He has acquaintances. He has people he’s friendly with. Say what you want but Reyna was a coworker. Dakota was cool, Gwen was nice. But none of them make Jason want to stay at Camp Jupiter instead of Camp Half-Blood. He thinks of Reyna but only in terms of he doesn’t want to saddle her with the responsibility of picking a new praetor. He thinks about duty. When he is picking between the camps he’s weighing his options between doing his duty as he’s done his whole life or picking himself for the very first time ever and he picks himself.

And it’s honestly so fucking depressing that the first time Jason picks himself and is actually supported in his decision happens when he is sixteen years old. And most of the people supporting him have only known him for a month.

But then he saddles himself with duty and responsibilities because that’s all he’s ever known and Percy is dying and Jason is a good Roman and a good hero and his job is to sacrifice his life for everyone else because of course it is. So he takes on Pontifex Maximus to build shrines and temples to minor gods and goddesses (not that they shouldn’t be honored but… once again he’s sacrificing his identity for the good of everyone around him).

And then, just as he’s finally discovering an identity for himself—he likes physics, he’s learning about the mortal world and living in it, he’s becoming more than just Jupiters son and Juno’s perfect hero—he’s killed.

Jason never got to be Jason. He only got to be Jason Grace, son of Jupiter, Praetor of the 12th Legion, slayer of Krios, one of the Seven, Juno’s Champion, Pontifex Maximus. He always belonged to someone else and never himself.

All this to say, Jason is my favorite of the Seven and although he’s not the eldest nor a daughter, as an eldest daughter I relate so hard and feel very seen in him.

[ms-dead-inside]

Can we please stop making unwanted, antagonistic rivalries between Percy and the people he genuinely cares about? It's getting tiresome.

Like, some of y'all act like Percy killed Bianca and then laughed in Nico's face with how much part of the fandom likes to act like Percy doesn't care. They'll talk about how he said that he wanted to cut Nico's 'stupid head off,' like he would ever actually do that. Like the same guy who hesitated to harm Luke when he was possessed by Kronos would actually follow through on what was a visceral reaction to betrayal when Percy knew that people's lives were on the line. Like he didn't spend months and months of searching for Nico, concerned for his safety. Like he didn't hide his parentage, wanting to make sure that the other campers didn't treat him differently as a son of Hades. Like he didn't steel his resolve to be the one to fulfill the prophecy so Nico wouldn't be in more danger than necessary. Like he didn't introduce Nico when he first appears in Percy's dream in the Last Olympian as 'My friend, Nico.'

And then there's Leo. And sure, Leo was angry at Percy at first because Calypso thought he had abandoned her to her fate, and that was the side of the story that Leo heard. But some people act like he actually did so, ignoring the fact that he made the gods promise on the River Styx to free her, something that they were then bound to do. And then he was kidnapped and put to sleep for months with his memories wiped. Where on earth would he have had the time to ensure they kept their promise? Even Leo, who still didn't know the whole story, essentially went, "Damn you, you're impossible to stay mad at." Yes, they had a rocky start, but they do form a genuine friendship.

And Will. While I think it be cool to explore how Will felt during the second Titan war, and all the angst that came with it, I don't think he'd blame Percy for Michael's death. Perhaps at first, or maybe even as a little voice in the back of his head, but that isn't going to stop him caring about the campers, Percy included. Y'all act like he wouldn't chain Percy to an infirmary bed if he learned just how many times Percy has had suicidal thoughts or feelings.

[somewhereincairparavel]

i will forever be disappointed at how the Aphrodite cabin is portrayed in the books.

Silena was an exception I guess but it wasn't enough tbh. I really dislike the way wearing makeup or dressing up fancy is seen as "shallow" or "too much". There's nothing wrong in wanting to dress extravagantly, it's a form of self prep. Fancy ≠ shallow. And the only "good" member of the cabin after silena was a girl who didn't like her own cabin and was seen as super "cool" simply because she rejected all the "girly" stuff by rebelling. Why can't we have both "girly" and non girly girls as cool people?

Drew was genuinely very shallow, but every time she's brought up in the books, instead of soley describing her personality, her tendency to wear makeup is shown as a bad thing. And it's not just because she's seen in piper's pov, she wasnt really described any better in Sadie Kane's povs either. When Sadie described drew wearing "awful pink eyeliner" upon seeing her + plus saying her perfume was 'too much' or something like that.

Reading about Drew's character description just gives me a headache lol because the way Rick wrote her as being shallow while ironically making other people judge her in a shallow way is just off putting. Like, no need to bitch on her for wanting to be more 'feminine' and "princess-y" ?

Give me an Aphrodite kid who sees wearing makeup as an art form (because it is) and not simply just to impress other people, like drew.

Give me an Aphrodite kid who uses fashion as a coping mechanism from their shitty life.

Give me an Aphrodite kid who loves knitting other people cute scarves as presents.

Give me an Aphrodite kid who loves doing younger camper's hair for them as their love language.

[lovemelikealovesong-33]

Leo: I am kinda noticing Jason and am slowly removing the "B" from "bromance."

[lavenderfairiez]

Leo must be colorblind the way he doesn't see all of Calypso's red flags

[1800-lemon-boy]

I will never forgive Rick riordan for making Leo and calypso get together but not Biltz and Hearth.

I will forever hate Caleo

But BLITZSTONE?!?!

CRACK

I LOVE THEM

BLITZ LEARNT A WHOLE ASS LANGUAGE FOR HEARTH

I’m very passionate about this.

This is coming from someone who read Magnus chase before he ever read Percy Jackson btw.

I’m still not over it.

Thank you for coming to my ted talk x

(I know that their actions can be platonic but just read the books and you will understand)

[inkyrainstorms]

Leo Valdez wants to be loved

Jason Grace wants to find a place to belong

Piper Mclean wants to know she she is, craves an identity all her own

And they all found each other, pushed together by fate and outside strings, but they made it work and found what they needed most in each other.

A home. A family.

[joshdonnas]

a gifset for every tww episode (in no particular order): 17 people (2x18)

"I’m just sayin’ if you were in an accident, I wouldn’t stop for a beer." "If you were in an accident, I wouldn’t stop for red lights. Thanks for taking me back. Oh, and the flowers are beautiful."

[poppitron360]

HOLYSHITTT THE MOST AWESOMEST HEADCANNON JUST POPPED INTO MY HEAD JUST NOW

Ok so I’m reading HoH rn, and we’ve yet to explain the whole “Festus is alive” thing, and I have a feeling it might not be explained, but I have an explanation for it and oh myy gods-

BECKENDORF.

In tlh, they explain how Beckendorf was the only one who could control Festus, right? And how the dragon went haywire after he died?

Well WHAT IF Beckendorf in Elysium tried for Rebirth and was REBORN INTO FESTUS???!?!?! Like when Piper woke him up and stuff, she called on his soul and his soul BECAME FESTUS. Or maybe before that- idk what the deal is with exactly when Festus became conscious. MAYBE AFTER HE SAW PERCY FALL INTO TARTARUS FOR ANNABETH AND REMEMBERED HIS OWN SACRIFICE AND WANTED TO BE A HERO AGAIN??? MAYBE HE SEES LEO, HIS LIL’ BRO, BEING BADASS AND AWESOME AND HE’S LIKE “I WANNA HELP THAT KID”??? OR MAYBE HE WAS REBORN WAY BEFORE THAT DURING TLH????

Anyway, idc what explanation they give, Festus is the reborn soul of Beckendorf and you can’t convince me otherwise.

Also, sorry for all caps I’m exited shut up

[cynthiav06]

So let's finally talk about it. There's very few things that can actually make me mad on PJO fandom. Calling Percy dumb is the first one. It makes me seethe in rage. And among the other ones is calling Jason Grace boring.

What do you think is worse than trauma? You guessed it. Childhood trauma. Jason Grace is one of the most tragic PJO characters ever. You could almost say the quest with the Seven was one of the better things that happened to him.

Let's recap his life real quick.

Absolutely terrible mother who dumped him near Lupas territory when he was literally 2 years old. And the fact that he would be better off with Lupa than with Beryl Grace is just a testament to how shit of a mother and person she was.

Then he had to win Lupa's approval while she trained him when he was a literal toddler. If you think that's the end of it, it's not even close. Then he was sent to the camp. It was pleasant, as pleasant as a child-soldier factory can be. Which is not at all.

Being the son of Jupiter, he had insane expectations and prejudices forced upon him, along with a certain caged way of living. Fight a certain way, behave a certain way, think a certain way, and repeat. A monotonous, cyclic existence with no escape and no way for self thinking. After all, the Romans are about as creative as a marble is sharp. Imagine it, a child being raised in the legion, by the legion, molded to be the perfect soldier and Praetor who should have only the Legions benefit in mind with no opinions of his own.

Anyone, anyone would go insane and lose their mind because this is torture, complete, and utter torture. But do you know what's worse, that Jason didn't know how the world was supposed to be. Whatever he was used to living, he believed to be the normal thing. He had no idea the things that happened to him were wrong for a long time. In fact, he strived to be even more perfect, all for what? The approval of a god that was his father? A god he had never seen or heard from? That in itself is the tragedy of most Roman demigods or just demigods in general. But at least the Greek ones get to see them every once in a while.

I think Reyna was the first to see his as his own person and to give his individual opinions actual importance. Because she knew what it felt like to live a life of servitude and imprisonment. Under Circe and the pirates. I like to think that's how they bonded. By making each other's lives a bit happier than their former bleak prospects. And I bet they were super close. You can't convince me otherwise. Which is why I will never forgive Rick for ruining their relationship over Piper of all people.

4.

Then, of course, he was demigod too on top of that, so his life was obviously and decidedly terrible. Being sent on fatal missions? Having the responsibility of not only his own life but his comrades life thrust upon him? CAN YOU IMAGINE LIVING LIKE THAT?? THE ABJECT HORROR OF A LIFE LIKE THAT?

5.

If that's not enough his even more repulsive and terrible godly father fucking offers him to Hera to appease her rage like he is some sort of bloody object. An object to be sold. A fuckinhg APOLOGY GIFT. And then what does Hera do to him? She wipes his memories, sends him to a foreign land which was previously considered enemy territory by the Camp he grew up in, forces fake memories upon him of fake friends, and sent him on another death quest. But at least Leo was one of the nicer things about that whole situation. I won't be touching the wreck that is Jiper with a ten foot pole.

And on, of course, he also gets nearly killed by the same goddess he was offered to as an apology gift. If that was enough, he would find out about the existence of his sister who had grown up and gone her own way, thinking he was dead and now was basically a stranger to him? Yeah wow.

And then everything else from the series happens like dear God, him and Percy are practically drowning in trauma. With Hazel, Nico and then Leo after them.

But at least Percy had Sally (even though the reason he put up with Gabe and his mental and physical abuse was Sally) and even though he felt like Sally was always sending him away and no longer wanted him which was fair of him to think but a grave misunderstanding. Sally was still the best thing in his life. Percy had someone to live for something to live forward to even though he was practically almost dying every year, which kept adding to his trauma. And Poseidon, he cared, acknowledged, and helped Percy. The bare minimum and Poseidon actually did even more.

We can assume Jason also had similar experiences with neither a mother's unconditional love nor a god's genuine care and love.

I am not going to say the Camp point because being the son of Jupiter, Jason had certain assurances, but Percy was practically ostracized or badly treated till book 3.

The only good thing that happened in Jason's life was meeting Reyna, the other Seven, and being friends with them, Nico and his sister, and also not falling in Tartarus, so yeah man's living his best life.

So no Jason Grace isn't boring, he is the most in depth character who had his autonomy and childhood stolen, his interests and opinions razed and his entire life molded and shaped for him, turning his mind and body into a tool to serve so called greater interests of Gods and Camp Jupiter. It's like ridiculing a blind man for not being able to see.

Next time, think twice before making that absolutely thoughtless, mindless, wildly inaccurate and cruel comment ever again.

There's no need to blindly hate Jason cause you love Percy or on Percy cause you love Jason. Hell, Percy is my absolute favorite, 90% of my posts are about him, but Percy is awesome and arguably the best all by himself. This is also true for Jason's character. (I am probably the only one who thinks Jason is stronger than Nico just due to greater experience and stamina.) We don't need to be like Rick or ship stans who demean Percy to prop up Annabeth or other characters. They are both iconic and great friends despite whatever rivalry Rick was trying to project.

[clarissaweasley-10]

Unpopular Opinion: Leo should have just stayed single at the end of the series.

Now, I am one of the biggest fangirls of our bad boi, but i am not saying this just so that I can have him- well not entirely. We all know how much Leo struggles with insecurity and an inferiority complex even tho he's SOO AMAZING, and let's be real, the others wouldn't have lasted a week without Leo. But sadly, no one has given him enough credit, and no one includes him as well. One of the things Leo is most insecure about is his looks- since he's the only among the seven who's single, Leo thinks that it's because he's ugly- not to mention the number of rejections he's had. So he has always thought that being single is a bad thing, because it means that no one cares for him enough- he isn't enough. This is a very toxic mentality, wanting this type of validation to know that you're perfect. The interesting thing to note here is that, if Leo were a girl, then everyone would have pointed it out/would have made a huge deal of it, but now?? (*cough double standards *cough.) Anyways, my point is, instead of continuing to rely on that sort of validation, Leo should have realised that he's soo much more than what some girls, or people in general think. He is smart, he is cute the way he is, and if people cannot accept that- well their loss. Just think about it, this could have been an amazing character development, from being a boy who was broken over love to one who knew his worth. BUTTHENRICKMADEMYBOYENDUPWITHSOMEOLDBITCH. Like seriously? Calypso? Calypso?? if Rick wanted Leo to end up someone, why not make him/her a person who valued him, and inspired him to love him for who he is. Heck l would have loved it soo much if Leo came out as bi canonically (VALGRACE NATION!!!) but no Calypso. Calypso. She is adding fuel to his insecurity. I mean honestly, idc what Rick wants us to think- Caleo is toxic af and messed up, i dont think they'll last. We can clearly see in toa how Calypso constantly degrades Leo in front of others and doesn't appreciate anything he does. AND SERIOUSLY?? THIS IS GIVING ME THE ICK. So my only sort of consolation is coming on Tumblr and reading Valgrace fanfics. Thank you valgrace writers, you are saving me sanity. Peace.