Fools Crow
Fools Crow is the protagonist of the novel and also lends his name to the title. He begins the story with the given name of White Man's Dog, but earns a new name after killing the tribal chief of the Crow. This is more by luck than by good strategy but he does seem to have a strong seam of luck running through his veins. Fools Crow is a young warrior and as such has many "coming of age" experiences during the novel. He has his first sexual experience, and also a sexual awakening when he finds himself attracted to his father's third wife, who reciprocates his feelings. Both are purified from these feelings and Fools Crow goes on to have a relationship with a woman called Red Paint with whom he has a child.
Fools Crow is presented as the future of his tribe even though that future is uncertain and will undoubtedly be very different that the life they have known before. He is trusted by the spirit guides and charged with the task of preserving the teachings and the heart of the tribe, and carrying on the word of the ancestors, even though it will be a very different world for the Blackfeet with the coming of the white man.
Kills Close To The Lake
Seventeen year old Kills Close To The Lake is Fools Crow's father's third wife, and it is with her that he experiences his first real sexual awakening, as he has fantasies about her that are particularly strong during his dreams. She has similar feelings for him and so purifies herself of these thoughts and feelings in the lake, telling him afterwards that she knows he has been having feelings for her and that she has taken it upon herself to undergo purification.
Fast Horse
Fast Horse is Fools Crow's closest friend. They are part of the group of warriors sent to take horses from the Crow but it is ultimately Fast Horse's poor decision making that makes the mission go wrong; when Fools Crow is seen by the scout Fast Horse calls out to him which of course alerts the Crow village to their presence. He is shamed by this fact and leaves the village, the weight of this heavy on his soul. Although he returns briefly to the village when he finds Yellow Kidney's body,and wants to bring it home, he does not stay, and spends the rest of his life living alone.
Yellow Kidney
The raid on the Crow is Yellow Kidney's idea and is originally intended to bring much needed courage to Fools Crow. He is the Medicine Man and is Red Paint's father, making him Fools Crow's father-in-law. He suffers greatly in the novel; he is captured by the Crow and his fingers all cut off, which affects him very negatively mentally. He leaves the tribe because he cannot imagine how he can live with such a mutilation, but later returns, determined that he will be able to learn how to do so. He is killed by the white man, and his body is returned to the village by Fast Horse.
Red Paint
Red Pain is Yellow Kidney's daughter, and is also the first true love of Fools Crow. The two marry. She names their child after the butterfly that she sees flutter past her when she first realizes that she is pregnant.
Owl Child
Owl Child is a rebel, and very much of the mindset of violence. He plans to keep the white man away by waging war, but his methods only succeed in provoking the white man and getting more of the tribe killed in retribution. Fast Horse briefly joins Owl Child after leaving the village.
The Feather Woman
The Feather Woman is a mystical character who has identified Fools Crow as the future of the tribe even when it has been dispersed by the white man. She shows Fools Crow what is going to happen so that he can be prepared for it and also so that he can see it is already written, and is the tribe's destiny, which means that he does not waste his energy trying to fight it but instead tries to create a future for his tribe that enables them to hold on to the ancestral past as well.
