Alex Fierro

Alex Fierro is a genderfluid, formerly homeless teenager from Boston, Massachusetts. they are the Norse demigod child of Loki (in his female form) and Mr. Fierro. After dying and being chosen as an einherji by their half-sister, Samirah al-Abbas, she is now the newest named resident of the Hotel Valhalla and a hallmate to Magnus Chase and the people from the Nineteenth Floor.

History
Alex’s family is influential, which first attracted Loki's attention, causing him to seduce Alex's father in the form of a "voluptuous red-head". Nine months later, Loki left him with a child. The family didn't take the news well, especially after Loki permanently "opened their eyes" and made them aware of the Nine Worlds and the Norse gods. Alex spent his life being resented for his Norse heritage and for his gender fluidity, which was thought to be Loki's fault.

About two years before becoming an einherji, Alex became homeless and began to wander the streets of Boston. At some point in life, she lived in a youth shelter on Winter Street in Boston, at roughly the same time when Magnus was there. She remembers hating the place.

The Hammer of Thor
Alex is first indirectly mentioned by Samirah, as the latter receives a message about a potential code three-eight-one: heroic death in progress. This prompts her to run out of a meeting with Magnus and an informant (which turns out to be Otis). Samirah initially refers to Alex as her brother, implying that he was male when he died.

After Magnus comes back to Hotel Valhalla, Hunding mentions that a newly arrived "monster" attacked him, after being shown their new room, which completely fouled Helgi the manager's mood. Hunding is also the first one to call Alex an argr. When Magnus arrives at the Nineteenth Floor, Alex – in the form of a cheetah and chased by the rest of the residents – charges at him, promptly knocking him back and puncturing several holes in his sneakers. It is revealed that he has been given X's old room and isn't exactly happy about it, leaving the place in ruins. When the group explores the room, they find broken pieces of ceramics, all decorated with the symbol of Loki – two snakes curled up in an elaborate S pattern.

Alex finally makes their full appearance during a combat exercise. As a weasel, she is carried in a burlap sack by one of Odin's ravens. After returning to her human form, she states that she's calmed down already and will not try to "mess [anyone] up". As the combat starts, and the dragons are released, Alex accompanies the rest of the Nineteenth Floor, and is asked about the shelter on Winter Street by Magnus. She explains that having been in the same shelter does not make them friends, as the group is attacked by an elder lindworm called Grimwolf. Alex deduces that it was Loki that somehow unleashed the monster inside Valhalla, and she attacks the dragon along with the group. As Magnus is distracted by a splinter of Loki's consciousness, Alex kills the dragon with her steel wire. Later on, Loki is seen channelling his energy through Magnus, which will kill him and subsequently blow up quarter of the training ground. Seeing no other option, Alex decapitates Magnus with the garotte.

Alex is later seen sitting next to Sam at the Thanes' table, waiting for her final moments to be revealed. Neither she nor Sam are very comfortable with the Valkyrie Vision video: it started to record much earlier than Samirah intended, and it shows Samirah's embarrassing conversation with her grandparents and the Fadlans. The action moves to Alex, saving an older man from wolves – sons of Fenris. The man, a Norse demigod in denial, refuses to fight and leaves Alex alone, which results in the latter's death. Alex is then chosen by Samirah and brought to Hotel Valhalla. The video leaves the thanes and the einherjar in awe. They applaud to Alex for her bravery, and accept her into Valhalla, despite her being both a child of Loki and an argr. Later, Magnus sees Alex accompanied by the people from the Nineteenth Floor, as he talks with Sam. During their discussion, Sam reveals that Alex was initially very hostile when rescued as she thought that becoming an einherjar would restrict her to a single gender.

Alex, now male, is later seen with Halfborn Gunderson as they accompany Samirah and Amir Fadlan. Due to Loki's schemes, Sam's grandparents and the Fadlan family have learnt about the Norse gods and their connection to Sam, so Sam attempts to show Amir the Bifrost Bridge to better his understanding of her world. As her half-brother, Alex volunteers to be a chaperone to Sam, and he himself is chaperoned by Halfborn. After Amir is shown the Bridge, all of them are invited to meet Heimdall, but Halfborn decides to stay behind. During the meeting, Alex lies on the Bridge and makes "light angels". After learning about the location of Thor's hammer, Heimdall drops all of them off next to the Fadlans' restaurant. Alex joins Magnus, Sam and Amir for dinner as they discuss the consequences of Sam's grandparents learning about the Nine Worlds. Later, Magnus and Alex get back to Hotel Valhalla, but not before Alex wisely asks for a doggie bag to pack up the leftover falafel.

The next morning, they visit Randolph's house in Midgard to look for clues that might lead them to Thrym. Magnus and Alex, currently female, engage in a conversation regarding Alex's gender fluidity, and Alex explains to Magnus that she does not identify as non-binary and does not like to be referred to using "they/them" pronouns. Soon after, they find a photo of Bridal Veil Falls, which they believe is where Sam is about to get married. Magnus and Alex regroup with Sam, Hearth, and Blitz soon afterwards. With the aid of Stanley, the two travel to Jotunheim along with Blitz, where they aim to find Utgard-Loki. After an encounter with a giant called Tiny, whose colossal bag they must carry, Alex tells Magnus about the circumstances of her birth.

When Blitzen has altered the bag to shrink down to normal size, the trio head to Utgard-Loki's palace, where they reunite with Sam and Hearth. Alex and Magnus are tasked with defeating a pair of giants at bowling, in a contest at Utgard Lanes. However, the giants cast an illusion on the lane of the einherjar, making their bowling balls travel through a portal that connects to Midgard's White Mountains. The giant duo roll two perfect frames, while Magnus and Alex's own rolls cannot connect with the pins. During their final frame, Alex joins hands with Magnus to dispel the illusory portal together. Magnus bowls a perfect frame, while for her frame Alex shapeshifts into an elephant and knocks over all the pins. They subsequently win the contest.

After Utgard-Loki gives them the information they need to retrieve Thor’s hammer, the group is chased by Utgard-Loki’s giants but are almost immediately saved by the goddess Sif, wife of Thor. Sif teleports them to her home in Asgard where Thor also resides via Yggdrasil, and presents Hearth with a bag of runes as a gift. As she rides the elevator with her friends to Thor’s “man-cave”, Alex expresses her initial dislike for Sif, and agrees with Samirah when the latter says that the goddess is both dense and vain. Later, after discussing the retrieval of Mjolnir with Thor, Alex offers to pretend to be Thrym's bride in Samirah’s place, due to the oath of marriage that Sam swore with Amir on the Bifrost as well as her confidence in her ability to be immune to Loki’s powers. When Thor argues that she is an argr and not a “proper girl”, Alex retorts that she is gender fluid and well suited for the task.

The next morning, Alex is dressed in preparation for her “wedding” by Sif, after which her opinion of the goddess changes. Sif also warms to Alex.

After the goddess Sif gets Alex dressed and they come out, Magnus is left awestruck seeing Alex as she looks beautiful. Magnus and Sam also get ready for the wedding as the chaperone and the bridesmaid, and Sif opens them a portal to Taco Bell where Thor's chariot is waiting.

The trio arrives at Thrym's home, where the giants hold a wedding feast. After the feast, since the father of the bride must be present, the giants tunnel down into the cavern where Loki is held prisoner. Alex manages to keep up the act throughout the ceremony. When Loki asks Randolph to cut his binds with the Skofnung Sword, Alex reveals herself and attacks Thrym, while Magnus and Samirah take on the rest of the giants. They eventually defeat the giants – with help arriving in the form of Blitzen, Hearthstone, Mallory Keen, Halfborn Gunderson, and T.J. – but Loki escapes. Alex later tells Magnus that Loki, during the fight, willed her to die.

Back at Hotel Valhalla, Alex offers to help Samirah learn to resist Loki's control, but she refuses, to Alex’s hurt. She, Samirah, Magnus, Blitzen, and Hearthstone are tasked by Helgi, on Odin's raven's orders, to recapture Loki. Alex then storms off to her room, where she begins working on a clay trophy as a gift for Sif.

The next morning, Magnus pays a visit to Alex, now male. He admits that Sam can resist Loki's power by accepting shape shifting and using it as frequently as Alex does. By the end of their conversation, Alex has shifted to female, and Magnus knows before he is told. Alex throws a piece of pottery she had made the night before at him as he walks out.

Appearance
Alex is a teenage einherji, and shares a lot of physical traits with her mother Loki. She is petite, as stated on page 224 of Hammer of Thor, with sharp and beautiful facial features and the same sly grin as the god of lies. She has heterochromia, with one dark brown and one pale amber eye, and her hair is dark at the roots but dyed green. She also has a tiny symbol of Loki tattooed on her nape. Magnus noted that Alex's physical appearance did not change when he was a boy, except for his hair, which actually seemed to be longer.

Alex dresses rather flashily and flamboyantly, in primarily pink and green. He wears a pink-and-green argyle sweater-vest over a white tee, skinny lime green jeans, and battered rose high-tops. Tied around his waist like a kilt is a cashmere sweater, which conceals a garrote wire and a hunting knife tucked behind a belt. His appearance has been compared to both a jester's motley and a venomous animal giving off warning signs.

Personality
Alex Fierro is brave, sarcastic and moody, with a tendency to throw things at people when she is in a bad mood. Alex doesn't show what she feels readily, proven in the moment where Alex didn't want Magnus to heal her lest he saw into her brain.

Unlike Sam, who rarely shapeshifts, lest her father takes hold of her, Alex changes habitually, because she wants to make that power hers, not just Loki's so she can't use it to take hold of her. This defiance towards her mother is also shown when Alex tells Magnus that the tattoo that she has on her neck was originally a symbol of change and versatility, and that it later became a symbol for Loki. Alex liked the symbol and believed that it shouldn't just be Loki's. The tattoo is a sign of her defiance of Loki, not a sign that Alex is an agent of Loki's. The comfort she finds in pottery shows that she loves the idea of being able to change, just like her attitude changes easily towards Sif. Alex at first hates Sif; afterwards, when her opinion of her has changed, she decides to make a vase for Sif, and even keeps the wedding dress that Sif gives her.

Alex's bravery is shown throughout the Hammer of Thor. She defeats the blue wolf in the form of a German Shepherd, and gives a weapon to the Norse demigod in denial. Her plan to replace Samirah in the wedding is very courageous, and shows that she is willing to protect her friends, in this case, Samirah's promise to Amir.

Family
Mr. Fierro and Step-Mother

Alex was born out of an affair between their father and Loki. After Loki opened them to the nine words they were never the same again. Alex was harassed by her father for her biological mother's deeds and for being gender fluid. This resulted in Alex being forced out of the streets.

Her stepmother did not interfere while her father abused her.

Loki

Loki, the God of Mischief, is the mother of Alex. He has made numerous attempts to take their life throughout Hammer of Thor. When he recognised Alex during Valhalla's battle training, he tried to kill her by causing Magnus to self-detonate by channeling her energy through him. Upon escaping, Loki willed Alex to die. This attempt however failed.

Samirah al-Abbas

Alex and Sam have an unstable relationship. When they first met, Alex punched Sam in the face. They appear to cooperate well together during the wedding. After the quest, Sam upsets her by rejecting her offer to help the Valkyrie resist Loki's control over her.

Friends
Magnus Chase

When they first met Alex (as a cheetah) ran over Magnus' feet. She also killed him on the battlefield when he was about to go nuclear. Magnus was initially confused when he learnt she was gender-fluid and started staring at her, but subsequently they started getting comfortable with each other. They have many things in common - both of them have a sarcastic attitude, both were homeless at some point in time and they both come from rich families which they chose to leave and ignore, thus Magnus can relate to Alex's experiences. Magnus was also the least doubtful of Alex's motives when she came to in Valhalla. By the end of The Hammer of Thor, the two einherji became close friends.

Some warmth could be developing between the two. Magnus mentioned that when she smiled the temperature rose by 5 degrees, when they were in Randolph's mansion. Following this, she made him wrap his arms around her waist when they were about to ride Stanley, though this could have been simply to ensure his safety. Finally, he was staring at her when she was dressed in bridal attire by Sif in her palace.

Hearthstone & Blitzen

At first, Hearthstone and Blitzen didn't know what to make of their and were doubtful, but they came around and became friends by the end. She does not know how to speak ASL, so she needs someone to translate when Hearthstone signs. Both of them considered her brave for volunteering to go - as Sam - to the wedding.

General Abilities

 * Pottery: In her room, Alex has a pottery wheel, which they use to make clay vases. Each of their creations is branded with their initials and the symbol of Loki.
 * Fashion Sense: Mallory Keen commended Alex on her choice of fashion, which included a dark green Stella McCartney dress and a tuxedo jacket.
 * Camping Skills: Alex has spent many weekends with the kids at their pottery studio, camping in the woods as a way of getting away. These skills were displayed when she helped Magnus set up a fire pyramid and some pup tents.

Demigod Abilities

 * Shapeshifting: Just like their half-sister, Samirah, Alex has demonstrated their mother's ability to change forms. When they first arrived at Hotel Valhalla, she panicked and turned into a cheetah. When one of Odin's ravens captured her, she was a brown-and-white weasel. While saving a demigod in denial, moments before his death, he fought off the sons of Fenris as a German Shepherd. They also shapeshifted into Samirah when she was taken to Loki's cavern for her marriage with Thrym.
 * Resistance to Loki's influence: As a side effect of using their shapeshifting powers so often, she is able to resist the power of her mother's influence on their body. As stated in in their room in Valhalla, they can do this is because they are comfortable changing; they have made they're mother's power her own.
 * Telumkinesis (limited): Alex was taught by they're mother how to turn anything into a magic weapon.

Einherji Abilities

 * Enhanced Physical Abilities: After gaining a new einherji body, Alex's natural abilities greatly increased, making her stronger, faster, more durable and more agile than she originally was.
 * Einherji Immortality: While within Hotel Valhalla, Alex, like any of the einherjar, cannot die, and will simply keep resurrecting from mortal wounds.

Etymology

 * Alex is a gender neutral name - fitting, as Alex is gender fluid. The name comes from Greek "Alexandros", which means "protector of mankind."


 * Fierro is Spanish for "iron."

Trivia

 * Alex's gender fluidity is most likely a reference to Loki's shapeshifting abilities and his two feminine forms – a mare that has become a mother of Sleipnir, and an elderly woman called Thokk.
 * Alex is female most of the time but occasionally has "very male days”.
 * Alex is the third canon LGBT demigod (after Nico di Angelo and Will Solace) to be introduced in one of Riordan's series, as well as the first confirmed Norse LGBT demigod.