Leah

Leah
"The Devil is real and he's not some little red man with horns and a tail. He can be beautiful because he's a fallen angel and he used to be God's favorite. "
Portrayed by	Shelby Young
Details
Species	Human
Occupation	Student at Westfield High School
Relationships	Violet Harmon (frenemy) Tate Langdon (attempted killer) Infantata (assailant, attempted killer)
Appearances	Pilot Home Invasion Piggy Piggy

Leah is an older classmate and "frenemy" of Violet. She is a character in the first season (dubbed by fans "Murder House") portrayed by Shelby Young.

Quick Answers

What is the relationship between Leah and Violet in American Horror Story?

In American Horror Story, Leah and Violet transition from adversaries to allies. Initially, Leah bullies Violet, but after a horrifying encounter in the Murder House basement, their relationship changes. Leah ceases her bullying, befriends Violet, and they share their supernatural experiences. Their bond is compared to siblings who are forced to coexist despite their differences.

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Why is smoking a sensitive subject for Leah in American Horror Story?

In American Horror Story, Leah's aversion to smoking stems from her grandmother's death due to lung cancer. Despite her initial disdain for the habit, and her confrontations with Violet over it, Leah's traumatic encounter in the Murder House leads her to adopt smoking.

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How does Leah's character contribute to the plot of the first season of American Horror Story?

In the first season of American Horror Story, Leah, played by Shelby Young, evolves from being Violet Harmon's bully to her confidant after an attack by Infantata. Their shared trauma binds them together, despite their initial animosity. Leah's mention of Satan marks a significant foreshadowing of the series' central antagonist, influencing the narrative of subsequent seasons.

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What role does Shelby Young play in American Horror Story?

In the first season of American Horror Story, Shelby Young portrays Leah, initially a bully to Violet Harmon, but later becomes her confidant following a traumatic incident. Leah is notable as the first character in the series to mention Satan. Young also collaborates with Ashley Rickards on MTV's Awkward.

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Why does Violet invite Leah to Murder House in American Horror Story?

After a terrifying encounter in the Murder House basement, Leah, initially a bully towards Violet, confides in her about the supernatural experience. This shared encounter leads to Violet inviting Leah to the Murder House in American Horror Story, marking a shift from adversaries to friends as they navigate their shared supernatural experiences.

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Background

Leah picks on Violet during her first day at Westfield High, after she sees Violet smoking in a public area. According to one of Leah's friends, Leah's grandmother died of lung cancer, so smoking is a sensitive subject for her. She continues to pick on Violet until Violet invites her to Murder House, on the promise of selling her cocaine. Violet leads Leah into the basement where Tate and the Infantata scare Leah and injure her (deep gashes in her cheek) in the process. Leah tells her parents she was mugged and files a false police report. She confides in Violet after the incident, claiming she thinks she saw the Devil in the basement. They currently spend time together to deal with their supernatural experience.

Personality and Appearance

Leah was originally a mean-spirited bully who continuously harassed Violet. However, after being scared and attacked in the basement of the Murder House by Tate Langdon, Leah was shown to have stopped bullying Violet at school, befriending her and confiding in her. After having witnessed pure evil in the Murder House, her hair started to turn white from shock, and she became depressed, apathetic and fearful, as she was haunted by her traumatic experience. While she originally despised smoking, and even harassed Violet for smoking, she took up the habit herself after being spooked in the Murder House.

Story

Leah and Violet have a confrontation at school, which results in Violet spitting in Leah's face. Tate and the Infantata scares and injure Leah in the basement of the house. A few days later, Violet checks up on Leah at an abandoned swimming pool/skate park. Leah asks Violet if she believes in the Devil. She also confesses that her hair is turning white and she filed a fake police report about the scratch marks on her face.

Leah and Violet meet up in the abandoned swimming pool/skate park again. They discuss their anxiety and problems resulting from the horror of the basement. Leah has turned to the Bible, especially the apocalyptic "Book of Revelations", to make sense of her experience. She gives Violet sleeping pills with which Violet later attempts suicide.

Quotes

• Leah

  Do you believe in the devil?

  Violet

  No.

  Leah

  I do. I've looked into his eyes.

• To Violet Harmon: "The Devil is real and he’s not some little red man with horns and a tail. He can be beautiful because he's a fallen angel and he used to be God's favorite."
  
• To Violet Harmon: "In Heaven, there's this woman in labor howling in pain. And there's a red dragon with seven heads waiting so he can eat her babies. But the Archangel Michael, he hurls the dragon down to earth. From that moment on, the red dragon hates the woman, and declares war on her and all of her children. That's us."
  

Notes

• The actress portraying Leah, Shelby Young, said in a "Q & A" with fans that she and Taissa had discussed Leah and Violet's relationship and decided that the two are not really friends. They do, however, have no one else to talk to about the horrors of the house, since no one would believe them. They are therefore forced to spend time together to deal with their traumatic experience. Shelby likened Leah and Violet's relationship to that of siblings who do not like each other, but are stuck together.
• Shelby Young is also together with Ashley Rickards (dead cheerleader Chloe Stapleton) on MTV's Awkward.
• Leah is the first character to mention Satan in the entire American Horror Story series. Satan would go on to have a physical appearance in the following season, Asylum, whilst in possession of Sister Mary Eunice, and thereafter would have his most prominent role to date in Apocalypse. Leah's mention of Satan would be major foreshadowing of events in the series to come, and arguably, the series' central antagonist overall.

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