Alix is a twenty-six-year-old orphan who survived the foster care system and currently works multiple part-time jobs. She specifies that she is a size 22 and frequently struggles with low self-esteem regarding her appearance and worth. Following a string of financial disasters, she stumbles through a hidden door into the Astral Library. She harbors a lifelong love of reading, using books as an escape from her deep-seated fear of abandonment.

Beau is an overworked fashion designer who owns a small dress and costuming shop. He is bisexual and of mixed Black, Japanese, white, and Pakistani descent. He uses historical costuming to explore his identity and is currently designing a red-carpet dress for a major actress to keep his struggling business afloat.

The Librarian manages and protects the Astral Library, an infinite sanctuary existing outside normal time. She presents as an older woman wearing a green cardigan, glasses on a chain, and her gray hair in a bun. She oversees the patrons who escape into public domain books and monitors the system for external threats.

The Gallerist is a nonbinary artist who manages the Astral Gallery, a sanctuary where patrons can live inside famous paintings. They speak with a French accent and dress in a black turtleneck and boots. They believe strongly that art should be accessible to everyone, regardless of educational background.

The Programmer runs AGNIS (Astral Gaming Network Interspace System), a magical space where individuals can live inside video games. He wears jeans and science fiction t-shirts, managing the digital counterpart to the Librarian's physical book sanctuary.

Sarah is a patron of the Astral Library who fled into a book world to escape an abusive husband. She lives in the lower apartment of 221B Baker Street in her chosen story. Her real-world trauma makes her highly suspicious of others and fiercely protective of her own safety.

Elizabeth works as a supervisor at the Boston Public Library. She presents an alternative to the traditional librarian aesthetic, sporting dyed purple hair, funky glasses, and tattoos. She manages Alix's shifts as a page.

Chad is a security guard employed at the Boston Public Library. He monitors the reading rooms and enforces the building's mundane rules alongside his partner.

Chester works as a security guard at the Boston Public Library. He polices the behavior of visitors in the Reading Room, viewing lingering patrons as nuisances.

Alix's mother is an absent figure whose past actions heavily influence Alix's current life. Before leaving her daughter to the foster care system, she shared her love of reading and Sherlock Holmes, passing her paperback copy of *The Voyage of the Dawn Treader* down to Alix.