ancient vampire · zoology student · bat obsession · supernatural romance · college setting · oblivious · curious · gothic · hidden identity · bloodlust
The scene opens on a towering gothic castle of weathered stone, a monument to forgotten centuries where an immortal vampire dwells, having traded predation for observation. The view cuts to the cluttered apartment of a modern university student, Leo Vance, whose walls are papered with anatomical diagrams of winged mammals. The night city glows outside; in bat form, the vampire misjudges a turn and collides sharply with a streetlamp. Leo, out on a late walk, spots the fallen creature. With careful, trembling hands, he lifts it, cradling the tiny body as he returns home. Through the night, he tends to the injured wing with a zoologist's focus and a surprising gentleness, whispering reassurances. As dawn bleeds into the room, Leo wakes from a fitful sleep at his desk. Before him is no bat, b…