Leopold "Leo" Fitz is a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent skilled in the engineering side of weaponry. He’s a technological and science enthusiast and is one of the youngest graduates of S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy of Sci-Tech to-date.

edit] Biography

Not much is known of Fitz’s young life, though he has mentioned that his mother "tried her best" to support her son’s engineering abilities but Fitz "may as well have been speaking Japanese" when he tried talking to her about it. Due to his high IQ (implied to be at least 170), he was recruited by S.H.I.E.L.D. to enter their Academy of Sci-Tech at 16 (it is not known whether he was recruited out of high school or by having at least one PhD, though the former seems more likely). As a shy teenager and younger than most of his classmates, he didn’t have any friends, and was most likely subjected to the usual freshman pranks at the Academy. He also grew to dislike a certain Professor Vaughn at the Academy, whom – it can be implied – to have belittled Fitz during his studies there.

In fact, he didn’t like it at all at the Academy until he met Jemma Simmons, also 16 and a freshman, and the two became fast friends despite being in different disciplines, with Simmons being a biochemist. Soon, they were utilizing their different talents to collaborate on projects far more advanced than their peers, and added to the fact that they spent most of their time together, led to their new nickname of "Fitzsimmons". Fitz was, according to most cadets at the Academy of Sci-Tech, the "smartest person to come through here", though he in turn believes it to be Simmons, but "only because she likes homework more than life itself". Both he and Simmons graduated early at 17, after only one year at the Academy – the youngest Sci-Tech graduates to-date – and were posted to a Sci-Ops facility to do research for S.H.I.E.L.D., though they remained popular at the S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy to this day.

Fitz and Simmons were fortunate enough to be advised by S.H.I.E.L.D. Asset Dr. Franklin Hall during their second year in Sci-Ops, a visit that made a lasting impression on both scientists.

edit] Season 1

Sometime in September 2013, the research pair Fitz and Simmons were offered a transfer from Sci-Ops to a new mobile command unit spearheaded by Agent Phil Coulson. Being the more reserved one of the pair, Fitz wasn’t enthusiastic about the offer, preferring to stay safe in their present lab. However, Simmons persuaded him to accept the offer with her, citing it as "the most perfect opportunity to see the world", and he finally, but very reluctantly did, reporting for duty on The Bus along with Agents Grant Ward and Melinda May, despite not being cleared for combat or field operations.

Being the scientists of the team, Fitzsimmons were more used to running the back-end of operations, which caused them to freeze up more often than not when field operations go south. Fitz was extremely surly and displeased when a simple reconnaissance mission in Peru landed the team squarely in the middle of gunfire in the first week of their new assignment, but subsequent events allowed him to band together with his other teammates to retake the plane from hostile forces, and he was even heard to smugly declare that his hated Professor Vaughn can go "eat that" due to his key role in the plane reclaiming (which involved blowing a hole in the plane hull).

Over the weeks, he settled into life on the Bus better than expected, and even gradually began to socialize with the other agents as well as newcomer civilian hacker consultant Skye, formerly of the Rising Tide, whom he had a slight crush on her abilities, as well as supporting her friendship with his partner. His trusting nature took a pounding when it was revealed that Skye has a boyfriend, Miles Lydon, also of the Rising Tide, and only Simmons’ placating allowed him to see past the instinctual betrayal he felt. However, both he and Simmons were also the ones to forgive Skye her misstep the quickest after her apologies, and the three of them are frequently seen to hang out in their laboratory when Skye isn’t training with her supervising officer, Grant Ward.

Tragedy struck when a seemingly bizarre case caused Simmons to contract a Chitauri virus, fatal because no human has survived it. Fitz tried to stay strong for his dying friend, but he couldn’t bear the thought of losing her, realizing for the first time that Simmons has been "beside me the whole damn time". Risking exposure to the virus, he entered the sealed lab to work with Simmons with synthesizing an anti-virus, and almost tried to jump out of the Bus after Simmons when she tried to spare the rest of the team from electrocution at the maturity of the virus.

Thereafter, he took greater watch over Simmons as she became more reserved from her initial enthusiasm about field work, though when he himself was called on a dark Level 8 mission over the South Ossetia border with Agent Ward, he didn’t complain, nor was he shown to be unfamiliar with field work for all that he disliked them, but threw himself into packing up any little gadgets he might find useful on the mission. His preparation, intelligence, and improvisation skills paid off, impressing Ward with his abilities and his hitherto unseen bravery.

Though almost ten years out of the Academy, both himself and Simmons are still a bit child-like at heart, and are not adverse to pranks, especially on newcomer "freshman" Skye. However, when things turned south in the ensuing battle against Project Centipede, with Coulson being kidnapped by them, Fitz’s S.H.I.E.L.D. agent side came sharper into focus, as, unlike Simmons, he was frankly OK with the idea of killing (as opposed to sedating) the Centipede soldiers and doing anything necessary to bring Coulson back, and was even shown to yell at S.H.I.E.L.D. members from Agent Victoria Hand’s team of scientists.

His return to his old stomping grounds at the Academy of Sci-Tech brought him into contact with Donnie Gill, a new promising young student with a 190 IQ and a history quite similar to his. The bond between the two, however, never quite cemented as Donnie was already being manipulated by another cadet who was unknowingly affiliated with Project Centipede, and Fitz was saddened at Donnie’s transfer to The Sandbox for observation after Donnie created a superstorm with a device he’d invented (something far more advanced than what Fitz managed to do in his own freshman year).

His experience over the past year taught him to fight his earlier fear of violence on the field, now daring to even fight at close range against an unarmed, though ultimately superior foe when cornered. However, the near death of teammate Skye affected him deeply, as he feels partially responsible for agreeing with her plan to infiltrate a location tied to Coulson’s kidnappers, the people behind Project Centipede, before the rest of the team could arrive to back them up.

edit] Uprising arc

Feeling guilty over Skye’s condition, Fitz threw himself into the task of absorbing the Level 10 classified report on Coulson’s death and recovery report in the hopes of finding something to help Skye, and was at odds with Simmons when he agreed with the results of Coulson’s operations despite the painful methods Coulson was subjected to in the process. As Simmons was prepping Skye, Fitz was selected to escort the team in the infiltration of the Guest House bunker where Coulson’s GH325 "miracle cure" was located. The situation within the compound quickly turned hostile, and Fitz thankfully helped find the drug in time. He was one of the two members to return to the surface with the drug in hand, and gave it to Simmons to administer it to Skye. Subsequently, he and the rest of the team kept from Skye the truth about her daily blood draws to deflect her suspicion on the miracle GH325 drug that saved her from death.

Fitz was shown to be a huge fan of Asgardians when S.H.I.E.L.D. tasked the team to investigate an energy reading similar to Thor Odinson’s arrivals from Asgard via the Bifrost on two previous occasions, and was unfortunately briefly controlled by Asgardian prison escapee Lorelei in her quest for world dominance. He was thankfully only mildly harmed in the duration, as Lorelei only used him to keep Sif, Skye and Simmons locked up.

edit] Training and Abilities

Fitz is extremely gifted in engineering with a very high IQ (at least 170), and was trained at the S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy of Sci-Tech, graduating at the tender age of 17. He has been described by Coulson as a rocket scientist. Among his creations along with his partner, Jemma Simmons, are:

• D.W.A.R.F.S. drones (research parameters provided by Simmons)
• Night Night Gun and its pistol and injector cuff variations (dendrotoxin is synthesized by Simmons), later renamed to I.C.E.R.S.
• Crystallization delivery mechanism (crystallization process is invented by Simmons)
• "Golden retriever" search beacons
• Field spectral goggles
• "Magic window" sonar/heat signature detection screen
• Wifi compact holder
• Video camera/backscatter glasses
• Anti-virus delivery mechanism

He has the ability to read a machine very quickly, enabling him to dismantle and rework machine parts immediately.

Fitz can also speak with a flawless American accent, an ability useful for undercover operations for a native Scot.

edit] Relationships

• Jemma Simmons

Fitz is close to, and almost inseparable from Simmons, to the point of being referred to jointly as "Fitzsimmons" by even the highest echelons of S.H.I.E.L.D.. Simmons was Fitz’s first real friend, one who can both understand him and match his intelligence. They became fast friends while at S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy, and have been researching together ever since, even after their posting to a S.H.I.E.L.D. Sci-Ops facility. While they occasionally bicker in sibling-like fashion, their familial love for one another anchors them together, and they will willingly sacrifice for each other above all others.

• Phil Coulson

Fitz looks up to his team leader very much, and grew closer to the older agent, as Coulson was not averse to joining in on team games on occasion. His regard for Coulson showed clearly when Coulson was kidnapped, as Fitz turned sharper and more short-tempered, to the point of disregarding the lives of Coulson’s kidnappers so long as Coulson himself was returned to them safely.

• Melinda May

Fitz has very little interaction with Agent May, but he is clearly in awe of her after learning that she is the legendary Cavalry, and respects and trusts her implicitly as a fellow teammate and superior agent.

• Grant Ward

In the beginning, Fitz’s overly familiar ways and his perceived immaturity rubbed Agent Ward the wrong way, and the two argued occasionally when their methodologies and philosophies differ. However, they can still be seen during off-duty hours playing cards and board games with each other and fellow teammates. Their relationship improved tremendously while on a two-man mission in South Ossetia, where Fitz’s previously unseen bravery earned the approval of Ward. The two now get along very well and are friendly to one another.

Fitz was at first very much struck by Skye’s superior hacking abilities and unconventional methods, and can often be seen hovering closest to her while she worked. Being of a similar age and disposition, Fitz, Simmons and Skye often hang out together in their laboratory. Skye is probably Fitz’s closest friend outside of Simmons, her open, friendly nature more than making up for her inability to match up to his level of intelligence.

edit] Memorable Quotes

Jemma Simmons: And don’t you dare act like these last months haven’t been the highlight of your entire pasty life!
Leo Fitz: Pasty? Oh, really? Well when did you become so sun-kissed? Because I’m pretty sure that every minute of every day, you’ve been stuck in a lab right beside me. At the academy, at sci-ops, this plane — You’ve been beside me the whole damn time!

edit] Trivia

• Fitz’s favourite sandwich is prosciutto and buffalo mozzarella with a hint of Simmons’ homemade pesto aioli.

edit] Other Appearances

No appearances outside Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. at this stage.

edit] References