The narrator is a young trans girl of Chinese descent who escapes her controlling parents in the coastal town of Gloom. Armed with a pocketknife and carrying a metaphorical swarm of bees representing childhood trauma, she travels to the magical City of Smoke and Lights. She openly describes herself as an unreliable storyteller and an escape artist, actively shaping her own narrative while finding her place among the trans women on the Street of Miracles. She is fiercely protective of those she cares about, often relying on violence learned from her father to defend her community.

Charity is the narrator's younger sister, who remains in their dreary hometown when the narrator flees. Six years younger than the protagonist, Charity collects strange natural objects like pine needles and dead butterflies. She represents innocence to her older sister, who writes her continuous letters detailing the magical and dangerous elements of city life. Though physically absent from the main setting, her development mirrors the narrator's own coming-of-age journey.

Kimaya is a warm, dark-skinned trans woman with a bright smile marked by a few cracked teeth. She runs the Femme Alliance Building, a modest clinic and social center on the Street of Miracles. Acting as a mother figure to new arrivals, Kimaya advocates for education, peaceful community-building, and collective care over violent retribution. Her pacifist ideology brings her into direct conflict with other community members when danger threatens their streets.

Valaria is a tall, imposing trans woman with a shaved head and black leather boots. Also known as the Goddess of War, she abandoned her former drag persona after a violent tragedy involving her past boyfriend. When the community faces a crisis, Valaria steps up as the uncompromising leader of the Lipstick Lacerators, believing that the women must actively fight back against those who threaten their survival.

Rapunzelle is an impossibly large trans woman and Kimaya's devoted partner. She previously struggled with an addiction to a transformative drug called Lost, which nearly destroyed her physical form until Kimaya saved her. Despite her partner's pacifist stance, Rapunzelle joins Valaria's vigilante faction, causing significant friction in her romantic relationship.

Lucretia is a particularly beautiful trans woman who easily passes as cisgender. She dates a wealthy man in a nice part of the city, giving her a slightly different status than the other women on the Street of Miracles. Initially arrogant and antagonistic toward the narrator, she joins the Lipstick Lacerators but soon questions the true cost and effectiveness of their violent mission.

Alzena is a magical member of the community known for casting spells, seeing the future, and brewing potions. She trades her mystical services for unconventional items like locks of hair or future favors. She provides essential, if cryptic, advice to the femmes regarding love, healing, and self-acceptance.

Josh is a wealthy college student and trans man who meets the Lipstick Lacerators during their campus visit. He bonds with the narrator over a shared love of books and quickly becomes her suitor. His presence offers the narrator a glimpse of a comfortable, mainstream life away from the precariousness of the Street of Miracles.

Dr. Crocodile is a disconcerting medical professional who provides hormones for the trans women of the city. He runs a strange clinic filled with magical and desperate patients, offering his medical services for a whispered, non-monetary cost that leaves his patients feeling compromised.

Soraya is a young trans woman and sex worker residing on the Street of Miracles. Her murder by a client forces the community into a bitter debate over whether to respond with collective healing or violent retaliation, acting as a catalyst for the formation of the Lipstick Lacerators.

Ghost Friend is an invisible, benevolent entity who provides the narrator with physical pleasure and emotional comfort. This unseen presence stays close to the narrator, warning her of potential danger and accompanying her on the bus to the City of Smoke and Lights.

Marie-Eve is the oldest femme living on the Street of Miracles. She runs a shop where she sells the narrator her very first pair of bright red heels, imparting the wisdom that a trans woman's heels are a vital source of her power.