Fox is the novel’s protagonist. Fox’s godfather is Death, who adopted him after his parents died. Although Fox is a mortal, he gains eternal youth through Brandt’s gift of Time’s watch. Fox pretends to be a medium in Chicago because he wants to prove to himself that he is not a worthless mortal, even though he must use Death’s powers to gain access to the afterlife. Fox believes that being immortal is overrated because he is brokenhearted over losing Brandt. After Brandt abandons Fox, he becomes bitter and vindictive, which makes his ledger go down. Brandt refers to Fox as “the fool” because of his hopefulness, yet as the years go on, Fox slowly turns into “the thief,” like Brandt.

Fox’s main internal conflict stems from his lack of self-worth. Since Fox surrounds himself with immortals, he believes that he is inferior to them because they have magical powers. Fox tries to hide his insecurity in his decision to become a medium because the mortals who come to see him treat him like he is immortal. However, through his lessons in the immortals’ game, Fox’s character development shows a resurgence in self-confidence.