In November, we shared the amazing story of a tiny kitten who survived a 30-mile journey under the hood of a car. We named her Miracle, and although her ordeal was harrowing, it was far from the end of her story. For today’s Happy Tail, we caught up with Miracle’s adopter to find out how this brave little kitten is doing in her new forever home.

When Megan Burak logged on to the ASPCA website one day last fall, she had no idea that her life was about to change forever. A self-described “animal person,” Megan works as an adoptions counselor and animal socializer at the ASPCA Adoption Center. She and her boyfriend had had many conversations about adopting a senior cat, but the couple planned to wait until after the holidays to begin their official search for a pet. However, as they soon learned, things don’t always go according to plan.

That November morning, Megan read Miracle’s story on the ASPCA blog. “Miracle was a beautiful cat from the pictures,” she recalls, “but I knew it was very likely that she would be undersocialized. Many stray kittens have not had enough human contact and can be very shy and fearful.” She didn’t think much more about the kitten until she headed to the Adoption Center for her volunteer shift, where she finally met Miracle in person.

“The first thing she did when she saw me was hiss,” Megan laughs. As expected, the 30-mile journey and suspenseful rescue had left Miracle feeling timid and vulnerable. She had even been given a special “privacy box” to help her feel more secure. “The hissing might be the point where most people say, ‘no thanks,’” Megan says, but the cat-expert was intrigued. “I have a very quiet household and I knew that if she and I clicked, I’d be able to provide her with the support she needed.”

Megan was patient, and over the course of the next hour, something amazing happened: Miracle warmed up. She slowly ventured from her hiding spot, and by the end of their session, she was asking Megan for food, petting, and handling. “Miracle went from hiding to a purring ball of fluff,” she says. “I saw the potential for her to learn to trust people and become a pet rather than a street cat. This little kitten was just asking for someone to give her the TLC she needed to come out of her shell.” Against all prior plans, Megan knew she had found her new pet. She officially adopted Miracle and changed her name to Luna.

Despite the kitten’s progress at the Adoption Center, Luna still had some work to do, and her adjustment from street-cat to pet-cat wasn’t always smooth sailing. “When I first took her home, she was very, very nervous,” Megan recalls. “She was scared every time my boyfriend or I entered the room.” The couple took turns spending twenty minutes each hour teaching the fearful kitten that they were there to give her food, love and attention. On the second day, she began playing, and by two weeks later, she had free roam of the apartment. Now she’s the queen of the castle.

“As Luna has gotten more bold, she has also gotten very talkative, Megan says. “My boyfriend and I crack up because she has a very raspy meow and sounds more like an old man than the tiny kitten she is!” Though she is still easily startled, Luna has adjusted wonderfully. “She is learning how to just relax and be taken care of, rather than fight to survive. It’s been very rewarding and extra sweet to see her be affectionate, and I know I made the right choice with my little Luna.”