A tiny newborn kitten came into a person's life unexpectedly. They nursed her back to health, gave her a friend to cuddle with.... She became family.

"One night, my neighbor and I noticed what sounded like strange baby birds chirping in a bush at our apartment complex. After a little investigation, jackpot... kittens!" imgur user arthisbeapirate said. "They were pretty deep in the underbrush and it was dark but there seemed to be three of them that looked to be only a day or so old."

Later they discovered a forth kitten that seemed to be in slightly better shape.

They decided to wait for the momma cat to come back while keeping an eye on the situation. "Unfortunately the mother didn't seem to be doing her job and the kittens didn't appear to be doing well. Eventually we decided we had to take them in, and only then did we realize that the three of them were stuck together in a tangle of umbilical cords."

After a vet visit and many sleepless nights to save the kittens, only one made it.

She was so small, but the little kitten was a fighter.

They continued to feed her every two hours and kept her warm and comfortable.

"Since there was only the one left, the vet suggested putting a stuffed animal in the carrier for some company so I donated the only one I had - a tauntaun (which seemed appropriate).

"Feeding eventually got easier and the little one would explore when out of the carrier, even though her eyes were still closed."

They didn't name the kitten until it became clear that she was getting healthier.

"Since she was the only survivor of her litter I decided on Ripley, in honor of the ultimate survivor - Eleanor Ripley.

"Eyes open, and (she is) starting to look like a normal cat!"

"One of the coolest things was watching her go from a shaking little alien creature to developing normal cat behaviors (scratching with her hind legs, stretching, cleaning herself etc.) without having any parents to pick them up from.

"Tauntaun continued to be a faithful companion/sparring partner."

As she grew, her personality came out, and she found herself in some tight situations.

Ripley became a little mischief maker in the house.

Snuggling with her human makes her a very happy kitty!

"Though her bouts with tauntaun became fairly lopsided, she still likes to wrestle with him."

"Ripley just celebrated her first birthday and is still going strong."

"She was made an unexpected entry into my life, and while it's definitely been challenging at times getting to this point, I'm glad we found each other!"

Ripley all grown up, happy and loved!

What a second chance can do. Share this story with your friends!