Welcome to our first establishment of the Winterwood Academy school newspaper! Now, bear with us as we get some necessary topics out of the way.

Breakdown of the Gifted:

For those new to the school (as we have been getting new students more frequently lately), we have supplied a list of the known Gifted in the world. Some of these you may not see in Winterwood, but be assured, they do exist.

Soldiers are the people who stand-out most. These are the orange-hued students who stand taller than 6ft and have unnatural strength, speed, hearing, and eye-sight. They tend to be employed in the school’s security program and usually go into programs such as the U.S. Army, as freelance bodyguards, or bounty hunters. We have quite a few in Winterwood, so do not be surprised if you see them walking around in the halls (this would also be why all the ceilings and doorways are so tall).

Sweepers can control things with their mind. They are employed in the janitorial crew because their Gift allows them to pick up single drops of water to entire lunch room messes. They are the ‘telekinetic’ Gifted.

Shifters are those of us who look the most normal. They have the Gift to be able to morph their human forms into other beings: we have feline Shifters, wolven Shifters, hawk Shifters, and many more. Quite often these Shifted forms have something that distinguish them from natural animals, such as horns, different hues of skin or fur, or mutations of the body.

Lizards are like the Shifters, except their ability is to turn into strictly lizard-like creatures. The difference, however, is that the scales, tails, yellow eyes and occasional horns happen to the body as it is, without changing anything on a skeletal level. They are walking lizard-men.

Rats tend to be the trouble-makers. Their Gift is that of inhuman sneaking abilities. They are able to pick a lock in two seconds flat (record set by our very own Johny Franken), they can squeeze into tiny places, and tend to have a skeletal structure like that of a cat: no collar bone. If their head can fit through someplace, the Rat can make it all the way through. These would also be the people who pull prank on the rest of the school and, due to their Gift that conveniently supplies adept skills of covering their tracks, are rarely caught. If you spot a Rat where they shouldn’t be, make sure to tell Mr. Linkin.

Angels are the Gifted with massive wings on their backs. Can’t see any? Not to worry, Angels are able to hide their wings by meshing their back skin with their wings. If an Angel walks around without a shirt on, you’d see feathers lining their entire back. They generally have classes outside due to the discomfort the meshing of flesh and feathers puts them in.

Torches are Gifted able to control fire to varying degrees. Some can catch themselves on fire, some can touch items and catch them one fire, while others are able to shoot fire from their hands. These guys tend to be really hot, and I say that from a pure reporter point-of-view. There are reportedly Gifted the opposite of Torches—those who can control ice. No firm evidence has been found.

Healers are the nurses in the school. If you get beat up in Coach’s class or find yourself needing to be hospitalized, you go to the Healers. Their Gift can heal anything you’ve got that’s ailing you from a small cut to internal bleeding. These guys are awesome.

Seers are the ‘future-tellers’ of the Gifted. They are able to see possible futures through cryptic  visions. These visions tend to leave the Seer exhausted, so if you ever see one in hall looking like they are about to fall asleep, be sure to get them some water.

Enticers cannot be found in the Winterwood school due to the lack of resources to train them. Enticers are the Gifted that can push someone’s thoughts in a certain direction, just short of mind-control. You won’t even realize what you’re doing until later on.

Vacators are the Gifted who can literally vanish. They are able to disappear and reappear somewhere else. Not much else is known about these Gifted, as none have ever approached the school.

Stay tuned for more news, and make sure to get your homework done!

-L