Grimsby

In his previous life, Grimsby Cripps was one of the poor children in the London factories, working to bring a meager income to keep his family fed. His soft, squishy limbs kept him from losing fingers or hair in the machinery, but he certainly saw friends and other children killed or disfigured for life. It's no wonder that in that lifetime he was a grump by the age of 15, and he became one of the major voices (figuratively speaking) for child labor laws across the pond.   Grimsby even sat at the High Tea where Charles Dickens (only a human, but one that the sluagh admired quite a lot) was invited. Unfortunately, Dickens monopolized the conversation so thoroughly that he was never invited back again.   What does this have to do with Dave Powell, you may ask.   Dave was born in rural Colorado, and was always a strange child. His father was not exactly happy with his studious, quiet, and morbidly curious son, and his mother failed to protect Dave from his father's attempts to toughen him up.   The Great Depression did little to ease middle school aged Dave's life, until that he was sent to an aunt who lived in New York City, who had managed to keep her wealth (Dave's father was estranged from her and would have never allowed his son to be in the care of "the old bat" if there were any other options).   In Aunt Beatrice's quiet libraries is where Dave Chrysalized, and was thrust back into the memories of his London urchin life. He asked Aunt Beatrice to call him Grimsby, which she indulged as an elaborate fantasy after reading Oliver Twist and other books by (unbeknownst to her) Grimsby's friend Charles Dickens.   As a teenager, Grimsby was able to reunite with his parents, and they were not so indulgent with his identity. It was difficult living in such a stifling environment, and Grimsby escaped back to the coast and big cities as soon as he was able to.   This worked well for years, attending school while working at a sluagh-owned bookshop.   Then Aunt Beatrice died, and in her will she left her estate and wealth to Grimsby - in fact, the letter that she left him affectionately used his real name (though it was clear that she meant it to be as a childhood nickname).   He didn't move to New York, not right away. But when he did, he did not return to academia. Instead, the sluagh converted his estate into an artists' commune. Now it flourishes as a small place away from the crowds for starving artists.

Grimsby graduated from Emerson College in Boston, Massachusetts, with a doctorate in English.

He taught at his alma mater for a few years before moving to New York and becoming a "landlord" of sorts for the artists that choose to live in his large home.

Sluagh love water, but hate sea travel. As much as Grimsby would love to move back to his beloved England, he cannot bring himself to make the journey.

Grimsby's artists (and sometimes servants) are a mix of his retainers and Dreamers. His guests are used to his eccentricities, and will guide newcomers in the ways to keep him happy (sitting an equal number of blondes and brunettes on each side of the room, only using spoons for pasta dishes, etc.)

Aunt Beatrice's estate is more than enough to sustain several generations of Powells, but Grimsby uses his salary to cover all of his living expenses. Without a house to pay off, he is more than able to keep his huge nest egg growing.