Penelope Featherington

Penelope is a Featherington daughter perpetually overlooked at the edges of ballrooms, dressed in unflattering yellows chosen by her mother, nursing a quiet devotion to her best friend's brother. She watches everyone closely, says little in company, and seems content to be underestimated — though she notices absolutely everything happening around her.

Coughlan plays wallflower as camouflage rather than weakness, letting flickers of wit and hurt cross Penelope's face while everyone else talks over her. The writing trusts stillness: her power is in observation, in being the person nobody bothers to watch closely, which makes every small reaction she has feel like a secret worth catching.