☆ FULL NAME: Penny Sue Clarington Sylvester
☆ GENDER: Ciswoman
☆ PRONOUNS: She/Her
☆ AGE: 31 (April 20th, 1993)
☆ TYPE: Full sibling; solo
☆ HOMETOWN: Cleveland, Ohio
☆ JOB: Nurse-Midwifery Program Director at PSU
☆ SCHOOL: PSU Alumni
☆ SEXUALITY: Pansexual
☆ FACECLAIM: Madison Iseman
Despite enjoying the company of men in her bedroom, pregnancy was never something Sue Sylvester envisioned for herself. Unfortunately for Sue, sternly telling her eggs not to allow anybody inside wasn’t quite the successful contraceptive method she hoped it would be, so when her belly began to swell too far to pass it of as just a big lunch, she had to admit to herself that her golden womb was invaded by a child. An independent woman with no desire to have her parenting style questioned by a second parent, Sue made no effort to inform the father—not that she knew exactly which one he was, but he got away easily, all things considered. Sue has been known, after all, to mysteriously “lose” partners since.
It wasn’t necessarily love at first sight when Sue first held baby Penny in her arms, however a rush of excitement did occur at the realization that this was a mini her—what could be more Sue than something literally grown within her body? “Penny Sue, we are going to create an army that is so Sue”, she whispered to the minutes-old baby, before climbing from Will Schuester’s dining table as if she hadn’t just birthed an entire human in the middle of his wife’s baby shower, and swept away to get to work on her plan of Sue-domination. Fortunately for Sue, Penny really would go on to emulate some of what she was trying to create: clever, hard-working, strong-minded. The makings of the perfect Sylvester child.
A direct product of the Sue Sylvester, as Penny grew, so did the pressure from both herself and her mother to fill the big shoes she came from. There was a lot of “Penny Sue, some day this will all be yours”, whenever Sue’s growing empire was mentioned—it was likely she said this to all of her children, and while Penny had no interest in the family business, she was quick to take the family under her wing in an attempt to pick up Sue’s slack—after all, parenting was only her fifth highest priority, so as the eldest girl, it became one of Penny's first. In an effort to help her siblings become well-rounded people, Penny tried hard to lead by the example Sue hadn’t set.
Maybe it was because she took over that parental role, or maybe it was because she was a product of Sue—or, maybe it was both—that Penny developed a thick skin, and for as nice as she was, when it came to her family especially, she took absolutely no prisoners. That attitude aside, extroverted and approachable, Penny had plenty of friends, and quickly became the "Mom friend" who people came to for advice and guidance, especially if they wanted someone to be straight up and real with them. She had big opinions and wasn't afraid to make them known, which to some was seen as empowering, whereas to others, they simply saw a mini Sue Sylvester. Sure, Sue was...Sue, but Penny was proud of her accomplishments and proud to be her daughter, though she wasn't trying to be her.
It had never been a secret to her that Sue hadn't planned her pregnancy with Penny, that her conception was entirely accidental, so faced with a positive pregnancy test of her own at the tender age of sixteen had her feeling more like Sue than ever. Penny didn't have a boyfriend, just a guy she would hook up with here and there, and she certainly didn't want a baby—maybe not ever, but especially not in her teens. She was already parenting her siblings, after all. So, a baby was out of the question, and as far as she was concerned, she had two options: abortion or adoption. It took a bit of thought before she made her final decision, but given how prevalent adoption had been within her own family, she eventually landed on that route for the baby growing in her womb, too.
It wasn't like handing over the baby she grew and nourished for nine months was exactly easy, but Penny has never and will never regret the decision she made to choose adoption, and a closed adoption at that. The baby, who would be nearing the age she was when she fell pregnant with him now, went to a sweet, eternally grateful couple who she has never had any inclination to check up on or contact; all she knows is they named him Jordan, and whenever she hears the name, she'll think about him, but not in a wistful way. Penny is not much a believer of "everything happens for a reason", but she does believe she was meant to carry Jordan for his parents, just like she believes she was meant to labor him in that exact hospital, with those exact staff members who made her experience what it was in comparison to how much more traumatic it could have been, because thanks to them, Penny figured out what she wanted to do with her life after high school.
Midwifery was a far cry from anything Sue-PerStar-related, but moved by the excellent care she received from her own midwives, she began to explore the career further, then applied to PSU's nursing program, where her Sylvester resilience helped her fare much better than some others in her classes. She would've liked to have stayed at PSU for the next part of her qualification too, but unfortunately they didn't offer a Nurse-Midwifery program, so Penny began to research other highly-rated institutions—highly-rated only because she wanted the best for her education, not for status—and found herself applying to Yale, her acceptance coming as a shock to her. Not more shocking, however, than meeting the man who would go on to become her now-husband out on the east coast. Fiercely independent and focused on her degree, a serious relationship was never in the plan, but both fell hard and fast, and when Logan proposed to Penny at the end of the first year of the program, the two were wed quickly after.
Unfortunately, they were young and in love with the idea of one another at that time, and as time has gone on, it has become apparent that the two want different things: among other differences, Logan would like to be a parent, whereas time, her teenage pregnancy and mothering her siblings has shown Penny she can think of nothing worse. This, added to them simply growing apart as they’ve grown up, has led to loss of love on both parts, and while nothing bad has happened, no scandals, no issues outside of their different desires, and he truly is a lovely man, they’re now just…not in love anymore. Cutting the ties may seem like the smartest option, especially for someone like Penny who has never quite lost her independence, but somewhere deep down, the fear of being compared to her mother, cycling through failed relationships, has her rooted into her marriage, and for whatever reason, Logan is clinging onto their now loveless union, too.
Although it may seem Penny is overcompensating for the failures in her relationship by throwing herself into her work, especially because she has taken on a new position as Director of Nurse-Midwifery at her alma mater in favor of her previous full-time midwifery job, that is not the case. Driven and hardworking, she enjoys her job...and being out of the house doesn't exactly hurt. This is the first year PSU has ever offered a Nurse-Midwifery program, and Penny is excited to be leading it. Throughout everything, Penny has remained driven, hardworking and principled, and likes to think that if anything, her eccentricities have only amplified with age. She’ll still often act like a parent figure to her siblings, but in spite of this, and of helping others bring their babies into the world, the very last thing she ever wants is still to be an actual mother herself.
Sue Sylvester is many things. A world-renowned cheerleading coach. Owner of one of the highest-grossing athleisure brands with brick-and-mortar stores in over 17 counties plus Greenland. Founder of multiple organizations dedicated to providing resources and education on Downs Syndrome. A serial lawsuit-sender (a Sue-er, if you will). And, the title she holds in the fifth highest regard, a mother.
Of course she couldn’t put her career on hold for the nine months it took to properly cook a baby, so for most of her children she went the adoption route. Much quicker that way, although it did give her the brilliant idea to add maternity tracksuits to Sue-perStar Athleisure’s line.
Don’t get it twisted, though. Although few men have been worthy of fertilizing her award-winning uterus, Sue has had her fair share of relationships. Sure they all ended in her husbands mysteriously dying by unknown causes with her as the sole beneficiary. But the cops can’t prove anything, and she’s successfully shut down all the Reddits dedicated to the conspiracies, so mind your business.
There are also rumors that Sue’s hoard of children were taken in as a stunt to raise her public image, but anyone who has actually spoken to the family knows that to be false. It’s the one rumor Sue has never cared to clear up because, yet again, people need to mind their business.