Squall Leonhart

Leon is a supporting character in the Kingdom Hearts series and leader of both the Heartless Resistance and the Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee. Originally, he went by the name Squall Leonhart but due to his world being destroyed by the Heartless he changed his name in an attempt to amend for his mistakes.

Squall was the main character of Final Fantasy VIII and wields the notorious Gunblade. Leon is twenty-five years old at the beginning of Kingdom Hearts and Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories and twenty-six during the events of Kingdom Hearts II.

Kingdom Hearts
''A swordsman who wields the Gunblade. His real name: Squall Leonhart. He escaped to Traverse Town when the Heartless raided his home world. To part with his old self, a man who had been helpless to stop them, he changed his name. Since meeting the king, who has been so vigilant against the Heartless, Leon has sought the truth behind the "key".''

"Final Fantasy VIII"

Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories
''A cool and collected swordsman who wields a gunblade. His real name: Squall Leonhart.''

Leon once fought with Sora against the Heartless, but the Leon we met in Castle Oblivion is a product of Sora's memory, so he can't remember much of what happened before.

Kingdom Hearts II
Final Fantasy VIII

''A swordsman who carries a gunblade. His real name is Squall Leonhart. He took the name Leon to distance himself from his past self -- the man who stood helpless as Heartless invaded his home.''

''For some time he took refuge in a different town, but thanks in part to Sora's help, Leon was able to reclaim this, his hometown. Now he works tirelessly towards its restoration.''

Early Life
Squall Leonhart grew up in the paradise world of Radiant Garden until it was consumed by darkness. Ashamed and angry that he was unable to defend his home and his loved ones from the Heartless, Squall assumed the name of Leon in order to distance himself from his past, vowing never to use his real name until the Heartless are defeated and his world restored.

One of the few survivors from Radiant Garden, Leon awakened in Traverse Town along with fellow Radiant Garden refugees Yuffie, Aerith, and Cid. During his teenage years, Leon formed the Resistance against the Heartless, effectively keeping an area of Traverse Town safe against Maleficent and the growing tide of Heartless. He was also known to travel between Worlds in his Gummi Ship, assisting other refugees in peril and relocate them to Traverse Town. His actions did not go unnoticed, eventually gaining the attention and confidence of King Mickey who was watching the growing battle warily.

Nine years later
Nine years after Radiant Garden's fall, which is now renamed as Hollow Bastion, when the wielder of the Keyblade was revealed, King Mickey ordered Goofy and Donald Duck to find Leon, trusting that Leon would inform them of the circumstance and help them find the wielder, Sora. It turned out, however, that Leon had already found Sora within the safe First District of Traverse Town, challenging and either defeating the boy in a duel or being defeated before dragging Sora back to the resistance's hideout; a room in one of Traverse Town's motels. There Leon and Yuffie explained to Sora about the Heartless and his destiny as the Keyblade's chosen one. Uniting Sora with the newly arrived Donald and Goofy, Leon then sent them on their way.

When Sora, Donald, and Goofy returned to Traverse Town again seeking Leon's help, they find him in the Secret Waterway, underneath Merlin's house, training. Here he offers information about the Keyholes of each World that lead to the heart of the World. He explains that the Heartless are drawn to the Heart's power and would corrupt it, thus causing the world to disappear; which is why Sora's Keyblade is so important, because it has the power to seal them from the Heartless.

Leon also gives Sora the Earthshine Gem which contained the spirit of Simba, for luck. Later after they move to the newly accommodated base; a previously abandoned house deep in Heartless territory, Leon and co. tells Sora about Maleficent and about Ansem and his journal before once again, seeing Sora, Donald and Goofy off.

He also gives Geppetto and Pinocchio a place to live after they escape from Monstro.

Escaping to Traverse Town from Hollow Bastion Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Kairi sought shelter with Leon's group. Sora informed Leon of everything that had happened prompting him to follow Sora and company when they left for the final battle with Maleficent in Hollow Bastion.

After Sora defeats the Behemoth Heartless that guards Hollow Bastion's Keyhole, Leon stands waiting to bid their farewells, for after, Sora seals the heart of all Worlds: Kingdom Hearts, the two groups might never see each other again.

Later Leon, Yuffie and Aerith can be seen wandering the Hollow Bastion Library, reading the books.

After Sora sealed Kingdom Hearts and returned the universe to its order, Leon, Yuffie, and Aerith are reunited with Cid and Cloud in Hollow Bastion.

Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories
After the defeat of Ansem, while skirmishing through Castle Oblivion, Sora, Donald, and Goofy later meet Leon and his friends in a memory-based version of Traverse Town. However, like the town itself, little did Sora and his party realize that Leon and his friends were actually the product of Sora's memories that were being manipulated by Naminé. Due to that, the Leon and his friends that Sora encounter have no memories of ever meeting Sora, but somehow know his name which they could not explain how. Like the Leon from the first game, he nonetheless decides to help Sora and co., such as by teaching Sora the card-based system as well as providing the Simba and the Key of Guidance cards in order for Sora to proceed. Before Sora leaves, Leon ensures him that he'll be okay, no matter what shape reality takes, and that while he may not remember Sora, he knows that he is in his heart.

Kingdom Hearts II
In Kingdom Hearts II, Leon is seen to be slightly more cheerful than he was in the original Kingdom Hearts, as he and others are rebuilding their home with Leon being the leader of the "Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee", which is composed of the returning Final Fantasy cameos from the first Kingdom Hearts and of Merlin. He fights alongside Sora in one of the fights near the beginning of the game when Nobodies attempt to make a move on the city. Sleeping Lion, a Keyblade in Kingdom Hearts II, is another reference to Squall.

During the Battle of the 1000 Heartless, he, along with many other characters, including Tifa and Cloud, helps Sora fight the Heartless on the Ravine Trail in Hollow Bastion, later named Radiant Garden.

By the time they visit again, the town is infested with Heartless from Space Paranoids. While Sora, Donald, and Goofy set off to Space Paranoids to help Tron, Leon goes to pick up the Eradicator Program that Cid has been working on to defeat the Master Control Program for good. They eventually succeed and Tron is able to remind everyone of the town's true name.

Leon plays the largest role for any Final Fantasy character in Kingdom Hearts II storywise, the only Final Fantasy character that has relations to King Mickey, and works very close to Sora and company. Leon is also the only Final Fantasy character in the game to come face to face with Organization XIII and fight the Nobodies. He seems to be a good friend to both Cloud and Aerith.

Appearance
In Kingdom Hearts, Leon's appearance is similar to his original appearance in Final Fantasy VIII, but with several differences. He bears some resemblance to Tetsuya Nomura's original design for Squall Leonhart, sporting long, brown hair as opposed to the short hair he had in his original game. Leon retains the black gloves, black shoes (each with a zipper lining it), silver Griever necklace and white undershirt that Squall had, and his short, black jacket is similar. Leon's jacket, however, lacks the fur collar, is short-sleeved, whereas Squall's sleeves were quite baggy, bears red wings on the back, presumably a reference to Rinoa's duster, and has a red Griever symbol on each shoulder.

Leon wears three brown belts on his left forearm and has three buckles on his right thigh, while Squall wore three black belts on his left thigh. Leon's black pants also sport a vertical zipper going down the side of each leg. Leon wears two brown belts and two black ones around his hips, all of which are quite loose except for one, a black one worn properly around his waist. Squall only wore two brown belts. his eyes are blue and he has Squall's distincive scar, which runs diagonally across the bridge of his nose.

In Kingdom Hearts II, Leon's appearance changes slightly to match Squall's original appearance more. His hair becomes a lighter shade of brown, shorter (though still rather long), and his bangs sweep to the left side of his face in the same manner as Squall's. He also adds the white fur collar to his jacket that was absent in Kingdom Hearts.

In both of his appearances, Leon wields his silver "Revolver" model Gunblade, complete with the Griever keychain.

Personality
When Sora first meets Leon, his personality is that of a withdrawn and quiet loner. Eventually he opens up to become a more caring person, as seen as when he is worrying about Sora, Donald and Goofy's safety in the aftermath of the Battle of the 1000 Heartless battle in Hollow Bastion. Although appearing as sullen and brooding in Kingdom Hearts, after returning home to Hollow Bastion in Kingdom Hearts II he seems to be more cheerful and is seen to be smiling more often and also has a friendly rivalry with Cloud. Leon has also good leadership qualities which he displays throughout in both games, mirroring the character development of the original Squall of Final Fantasy VIII, who himself began as a brooding and unconcerned loner but eventually became a caring friend and leader thanks to his friends.

Fighting Style
Leon may be mild-mannered outside of battle, but all gloves are off when faced with a tough opponent. Utilizing his Gunblade to deal massive damage with various cutting combos, he wields the element of fire to some degree, able to shoot Firaga spells. When his HP dwindles, he uses a desperation attack that causes his Gunblade, not to mention the damage it causes, to enlarge drastically.

Origin
Leon originated as Squall Leonhart, the main protagonist in Final Fantasy VIII. He is studying to become a full-fledged member of the mercenary force known as SeeD, and specializes in the Gunblade, one of only two current cadets to do so. Ordinarily introverted to the point of seeming rude to others, he is forced to take a role of leadership as the world moves toward conflict (similar to his taking on leadership of the Final Fantasy cameo characters in Kingdom Hearts after the fall of Radiant Garden). His scar still remains slashed across his face just as it did in Final Fantasy VIII, but is unaware of Seifer in Twilight Town. In the Kingdom Hearts II the fur on his jacket is seen just as it was in Final Fantasy VIII, however, it is unseen in the first Kingdom Hearts.

Trivia

 * In the ending credits of Kingdom Hearts II, Leon receives a letter, most likely from his love, Rinoa, due to the winged insignia emerging from said letter. Whether this is a mere reference or a hint that an incarnation of Rinoa exists in the Kingdom Hearts universe is unclear. As Nomura has stated that more Final Fantasy characters will appear in future games, it is currently unclear if Rinoa will be one of them.


 * Leon is the only character that has been confirmed to have canonically beaten Sora besides Riku. He appears as a boss early in Kingdom Hearts; although he's beatable, Sora appears to lose the fight regardless of the outcome (this makes the fight a "scripted encounter" that the player is supposed to lose). If the player "wins" the fight, Sora will receive experience points that he will not receive if he is defeated in battle. However, if Sora does win, he simply passes out from what appears to be exhaustion.


 * Leon is the only Final Fantasy character to be called by a name other than his original name in the Kingdom Hearts series, although the reason for this is explained in the series. He shares his pseudonym with the English name of Final Fantasy II character Leon, whose original Japanese name is shared with Squall's surname, namely Leonhart.


 * Leon's Blasting Zone is the only one of his four Limit Breaks to make an appearance and is significantly downplayed than the original Blasting Zone, which, animation-wise, extended beyond the atmosphere. Leon's merely magically increases his blade's size. This is carried over to Squall's appearance in Dissidia Final Fantasy but in a much shorter duration.


 * As in the case of the voice actors of the Final Fantasy VII characters in the Kingdom Hearts series, who were carried over to voice their respective character's original incarnations, Leon's voice actors, Hideo Ishikawa and Doug Erholtz, was recruited to voice the original Squall Leonhart in Dissidia Final Fantasy and is presumably the official voice actor of any incarnation of Squall.


 * Leon is the only Final Fantasy character to have ever held a Keyblade.


 * Another reference to Leon's conection towards lions is that the Spanish name for lion is Leon.

Léon