Innocence

A six-year-old newcomer who arrives in a coffin and is welcomed by the house. She is homesick, curious, and observant, quick to form bonds but wary of the school’s hidden rules. Her perspective anchors the story as she threads through friendships, rivalries, and the mysteries surrounding the nightly departures.

A seven-year-old who has risen to the orange ribbon and resents Iris’s arrival. She is volatile and controlling, using aggression to police the social order and to protect her place among the older girls. Her interactions reveal the harsher, punitive side of the school’s hierarchy.

Twelve-year-old violet-ribbon who becomes Iris’s ally and mentor. Practical and perceptive, she guides Iris through the social rules and the secretive undercurrents of the school. She plans and executes a dramatic transition toward leaving the school with Nadja.

The red-ribbon girl from another house who struggles to adapt, growing morose as the routine of the school wears on. She is drawn to risk, attempting an escape with Iris’s help, and ultimately dies in a drowning accident alongside the attempted departure.

Ten-year-old blue-ribbon student who desires to leave the school and see the world. She excels under the blue ribbon culture but becomes increasingly unsettled as an inspector arrives and fatefully fails to win the escape-worthy honor. Her collapse and subsequent disappearance mark a turning point in the narrative.

Indigo-ribbon girl who is younger than Bianca and accompanies her on nighttime trips. She shares the dream of escape and participates in secret rituals, becoming part of Bianca’s inner circle as the two plan and enact their departures.

One of the two staff women, who teaches dance and appears as a calm, observant presence. She observes the girls, enforces routines, and participates in the atmosphere of secrecy surrounding the house and its residents.

Mademoiselle Edith, another young teacher who guides the classes with a cane. She embodies the more formal, ritualized side of the school’s education and the lure of the theater where the girls perform for hidden audiences.

A mysterious figure who arrives only for the annual inspection and to select one girl to leave with her for unknown reasons, representing the ultimate authority behind the school’s rules and the outside world beyond its walls.

The oldest girl who had been Selma’s friend and once wore the violet ribbon. She is no longer at the school, a lingering memory that underscores the history of those who tried to escape and the price of rebellion.