Sophia is a 16-year-old lesbian living in Lille, a city in the oppressive kingdom of Mersailles. With the mandatory annual ball approaching, she faces the terrifying prospect of being forced to choose a male suitor or face imprisonment. Unable to accept a life of forced marriage and denied identity, she desperately searches for a way to escape the kingdom's heavily guarded borders. Her persistence and willingness to question the accepted historical narrative isolate her from those who prefer quiet compliance.

Erin is a 16-year-old girl who has spent the last three years in a secret romantic relationship with Sophia. Unlike her girlfriend, Erin is deeply afraid of the kingdom's laws and feels compelled to participate in the upcoming ball to secure her family's safety. She believes that resistance is futile and chooses compliance over the deadly risk of rebellion, putting a severe strain on her bond with Sophia.

Constance is the last living descendant of Cinderella's stepsister, living entirely outside the restrictive society of Lille. Raised with the true, unedited history of her family, she possesses survival skills and weapons training that women inside the kingdom are strictly forbidden to learn. She carries a fierce desire to dismantle the monarchy and provides Sophia with a vital perspective on what freedom actually looks like.

King Manford is the tyrannical ruler of Mersailles who enforces a brutal patriarchal system upon his subjects. He commands the annual balls where young women are claimed as property and swiftly executes anyone who questions his authority. He demands absolute obedience and uses the Cinderella fairy tale as a tool of state propaganda to keep women subservient.

Amina is an old woman living in isolation in the center of the White Wood who practices magic. While she accepts the label of a witch, she is intrinsically tied to the fairy godmother legends of the past. She holds deep knowledge of the true events surrounding Cinderella's life but has secluded herself to avoid dealing with the kingdom's current horrors.

Sophia's father is a hardworking man who conforms to King Manford's oppressive decrees to protect his household. He works long hours to afford special trinkets for Sophia's ball attendance, hoping to secure her a safe match. While he is capable of kindness, he firmly believes that defying the king leads only to death.

Sophia's mother is a pragmatic woman who loves her daughter but insists that safety must take precedence over personal fulfillment. She knows about Sophia's attraction to women but urges her to hide it completely. She focuses her energy on ensuring Sophia looks presentable for the ball, viewing marriage as the only shield against the state's severe punishments.

Liv is a 17-year-old friend of Sophia and Erin who previously attended the annual ball but was not chosen by a suitor. Coming from a family with little money, she cannot afford an elaborate gown for her second attempt. She places her fervent faith in the Cinderella story, hoping a literal fairy godmother will appear to save her from the shame and danger of remaining unclaimed.

Luke is a 20-year-old man who works driving carriages and quickly deduces Sophia's secret because he is also gay. Having lost a former partner to the kingdom's strict laws against unsanctioned unions, he despises the annual ball and the oppressive regime. He leverages his limited masculine privileges to help Sophia, actively looking for a way to fight back against the state.

In the palace-sanctioned history, Prince Charming is revered as the historical monarch who saved the kingdom from a terrible drought two hundred years ago. His marriage to Cinderella is held up as the ultimate ideal that all young women in the kingdom must strive to replicate. The laws he allegedly put in place form the foundation of the current oppressive society.

Cinderella is a historical figure whose life story has been codified into state law. According to the kingdom's official texts, her marriage to Prince Charming represents the perfect life path for women. However, rumors, hidden diaries, and exiled descendants suggest her real experience differed drastically from the authorized version taught to the girls of Lille.

Morris is a wealthy, arrogant young man from a family closely tied to the king. He fully embraces the kingdom's misogynistic laws, using his elevated social status to bully others. He views the annual ball simply as an opportunity to claim whichever woman catches his eye, completely disregarding their consent or well-being.

Édouard is Morris's brother and shares his family's wealth and cruel disposition. He uses his financial power to purchase a young bride at the ball, treating marriage strictly as a transaction. He fully exercises the violent authority the kingdom grants to husbands, viewing his new wife as mere property to control.

The seamstress is a working-class woman in Lille who makes a living sewing elaborate gowns for the annual ball. She suffers severe physical abuse from her husband, completely unprotected by the law. Despite her clear suffering, she has resigned herself to the reality that escape is impossible and warns optimistic girls against trying.

The seamstress's husband is an aggressive man who legally controls all the money his wife earns. He frequently abuses his wife over financial matters, taking full advantage of the kingdom's laws that declare a man's domestic violence to be entirely his own business. He represents the everyday cruelty normalized by the king's decrees.

Emile is a friend of Constance who opposes King Manford's oppressive regime. Like Constance, he operates outside the accepted norms of the kingdom and faces severe danger for his active resistance against the crown. His efforts point to a wider network of rebels striving for change.

Liv's father is a citizen of Lille who worries deeply for his daughters' safety under King Manford's laws. The pressure of the mandatory balls weighs heavily on his household, as he lacks the wealth to secure favorable matches for his children. He lives in constant fear of the state's judgments.

Liv's mother is a woman who lives in constant fear of the kingdom's social and legal judgments. She agonizes over her family's poverty and internalizes the state's propaganda, blaming herself for failing to earn the magical favor required to protect her daughters at the ball.