Both of Miriam's parents had family who had not only well survived the plague but had both had signs of transmutations. It wasn't at all strange that their daughter was not only healthy but in time showed that she had potential in having a mutation as well. Sure felines and canines tended to follow groups of humans around if purely for a safer food source, but they seemed to naturally love the little girl. To the point her parents could leave her playing outside with no worry. Through the years the bond slowly grew, to the point her family knew it was far more then simply being good with animals. They used this bond on a small farm they had, getting the bio mechanical horses to help them with the land and to move goods into the city. With this Miriam learned how to tend to the horses in manners of mending flesh as well as tending to mechanical problems. While they had a happy enough, if not difficult, existence things went bad. A trip to the city to get goods went sour. On their way back her parents were attacked, neither returning home leaving a 16 year old Miriam to fend for herself. The farm was too much for her to work alone and no one wished to work for a teenager so she sold it in time and went off on her own. While she did get a small house in the city she found she enjoyed being out in the woods even if it was more dangerous. There she gets work bringing in goods, plants, even goes back to the farm now and again to help. Being a gentle woman, even though she tends to dislike this, she has only light weight weapons. Her greatest aid in protecting herself tends to be simply out running anyone wanting to harm her or the giant Moyle acting as a guardian. Of course there are the various cats and dogs that tend to dissuade anyone but she does try not to push her luck in relying on their protection too much.
Any additional information you would like to add: While Miriam does very much dislike to get in fights she will do such if pushed into a corner. She's lately taken jobs in acting as a guide for travelers, helping them to get back and forth with a mild amount of protection.