When the twins were born, their daemons had already taken on a permanent form, as two tawny lions that were curled up against each other. This was not the strange part that people took notice of, for Alia was the same, her raven remaining fixed from birth. It was the fact that lions were not desert creatures. Stilgar did not even know what they were until it was explained in detail. Lions were all but extinct, only lingering in dormant dna strands of other cats, such as the Laza Tigers.

"It's unnatural," Stilgar pointed out gruffly. Alia shrugged while her raven fixed a quelling look on him.

"We are unnatural," she said, "But that can be a blessing too."