Hi! First of all, awesome to see some Shantae X Reader writers! I've been dying to see something like this!
Second, if your requests are still open I would like to request a one-shot enemies to lovers story between a Naga from Shantae (the modern ones with the armor and energy blasters) and a dorky mechanic Male reader.
Basic gist is that reader is trying to fix their stranded transportation before a Naga spots and attacks him. However the Naga ends up getting injured (be it some environment rubble falling on her due to her energy volley weakening the support, Shantae stumbling upon the scene and fighting the Naga, whatever floats your boat) and instead of reader leaving her to fend off her wounds by herself, he shows empathy and helps nurse her wounds, even repairing her broken armor while geeking out over the design of it.
I just feel the idea has lots of opportunities for cute & wholesome interactions between them, especially with Naga trying to understand the feeling of experiencing something other than constant hostility/aggression.
Sorry this took so long. Hope I did this justice!
You were absolutely livid.
Stranded in a desert is bad enough. But having your vehicle break-down was almost the cause of your own. But there was no point in complaining. That's just more time wasted in the harsh sun. So you got to work. Times like this make you glad you keep your toolkit on you at all times.
Whilst repairing your means of transport however, you'd hear the sounds of slithering approaching closer and closer. You turn back just to see a pair of blasts be sent your way which you narrowly evaded, but they hit your vehicle. Damaging it. Just great...
You turn to see your attacker, recognizing it as a Naga. You've heard of these creatures but never encountered one. And now that one's in your sights, you can't help but let your eyes wander over her. Her armor that is. So shiny.. so unique.. you wondered what it was made of, HOW it came to be, and if it could even be studied-
"AHEM!" Ah right. Naga. She wants to kill you for some reason. Gotta focus.
"Well, if you're day-dreaming, I'd appreciate it if you stood still for what comes next." She spoke, an annoyingly smug grin plastered on her face. "Wouldn't want to drag this out longer than it needs to be, would we human?"
Before you have time to truly think, she charges up a big shot (No [kromer]) and fires it! You panic, unable to evade it in time yet it doesn't strike you. Instead, a device you kept stashed away in your clothes had activated automatically. A barrier that would protect you from anything sent your way if you couldn't evade it. It seemed to have sensed the attack from the Naga and quickly did as it's functioned without needing input. Neat! For you. Not the monster girl.
You hear a scream of utter pain as the Naga's blast hits HER instead, resulting in a small explosion with some dust kicking up. Once it's settled, she's on the ground, coughing pro-fusely whilst her body is now covered in dust and bruises, her armor cracked and damaged.
"W-what...?! How in t-the world did you do that?!" The Naga questioned with a furious tone. Gritting her teeth as she makes an attempt to move only to be prevented by the immense pain her body was now in. Seeing this you feel a sense of.. empathy.
Sure she attacked you first. It was self-defense. But you never meant to hurt her THIS badly. The poor thing looked so helpless now. You take a few steps towards her, resulting in a flinch from the Naga.
"S-stay back!" She said, her voice now holding a sense of fear. A fear of YOU. Yet you kept approaching. She couldn't move due to the pain so it was only a matter of time until you reached her...
And kneeled down in-front of her. "What's your name?"
The monster girl eyes narrow at you. Clearly suspicious of your intentions and rightfully so. "I.. never had one. I'm just a Naga like the others." She explained whilst taking in deep breaths, attempting to soothe the agony her body was feeling.
"I'll name you Nara then." You say. It actually seems to get a positive reaction out of her. A VERY brief light smile carving onto her face before returning back to a scowl. "Why are you acting like this all of a sudden?!" She questions, a mix of annoyance and curiosity plaguing her tone. But you were reaching her. You could help her.
"I feel bad. It wasn't my intention to harm you so badly." You explain though it gets nothing but a scoff in response.
"It's fine if you don't trust me. You don't have to at all. But you can't really move like this, can you?" The Naga went silent. You were right much to her dismay. She could move her limbs a bit but actual movement was still out of the question for her. The quietness provided you with the answer without her needing to say anything however. With no more words required, you brought out a med-kit and got to work. Slowly patching up her injuries with gentle hands.
She was going to retaliate at first. Likely scream how she didn't need your help. But you noticed how she seemed to ease more and more as you took care of her wounds.
And you being you, couldn't help but marvel over her armor.
"This material is so unique! Especially it's design!"
"How was it even forged in the first place?"
Again and again, you'd praise the Naga's armor. And she found it genuinely adorable to see you being such a geek. A part of her deep down also began to feel a sense of shame. You were such a kind soul. And she was going to kill you in cold blood. It was in her nature given her species' reputation for being hostile and attacking anything in sight. But she now found herself questioning her actions.
Nara's eyes roam over you, taking in your features. You were definitely quite the handsome man.
Each time her gaze falls over you, her heart beats a bit quicker. She even feels herself getting a bit flushed. "Is everything alright?" You'd ask, promptly and unknowingly snapping her out of her daze. "Y-yes I'm fine." She answered. In truth, she was having an intense mental battle between her instincts and her feelings.
After a short while, you had finished patching up her injuries, helping the monster girl stand up properly with your hands on her shoulders. "Think you can move?" You ask. The Naga took a few slow movements, still feeling a bit sore but not nearly in as much pain as she was beforehand. "Yeah. I am. Thank you human." She gave you a gentle and honest smile that felt like it had set your heart a-blaze. Before you even had the time to register, Nara leaned in to kiss you on the cheek. "Gentle-hearted and handsome. I hit the jackpot it seems."
Blood rushed to your face and your heart pounded against your chest as if attempting to break itself free. "U-ummmm..." You were utterly shocked. This same woman that attempted to claim your life earlier had now pecked you on the cheek. AND she was flirting with you! "Your w-welcome." You barely stammer out a response. Shaking your head to regain a sense of focus, you make eye contact with her. "So umm.. I guess-"
No! I.. want to spend more time with you." You couldn't even get what you wanted to say first. Yet it felt like she had read your mind. You WERE gonna ask if this would be where you two part ways and it seemed like she wanted to hang around you for a bit longer. And it'd be a lie to say if you didn't feel the same way.
"Alright. Feel free to stick around while I repair my transport device. But only if you answer questions I have about your armor." You say, prompting a light giggle from the Naga. "Sure. I suppose it's the.. least I can do." She'd trail off a bit suspicously. You'd raise your eyebrow briefly before ultimately shrugging it off.
You'd get to work on repairing your vehicle while asking question after question about the armor Naga's usually wore. She'd answer it dilligently and also flirtatiously. Throwing in atleast one teasing remark with each of her responses.
Occasionally you'd glance over to see her lost in thought, her expression one of confliction and struggle. She wasn't meant to feel this way. Everyone was mere prey to Nagas and that included you. People LIKE you.
People who were defenseless. Weak. Unable to fight back. People who were kind. Gentle.
And yet she, alongside others of her kind slaughtered them without so much as batting an eye.
Sure they were the occasional times the people they hunted fought back, but most of the times? They all didn't stand a chance.
They tried to plead. Tried to beg. Tried to reason. Only to be silenced in the most brutal fashion.
Before she knew it, Nara found herself shaking, her eyes widening a little bit. It wasn't easy to breathe for her. As if the realization of her actions was sapping away her life.
Only to be halted by your gentle voice.
"Are you ok?" As quickly as her panic rose, it fell. All thanks to the sound of your voice. "Y-yes. I'm... ok." You eyed her a bit suspiciously. Not quite buying her words. But maybe.. you shouldn't press her on it. "Alright. I'm almost done here so.. we'll be parting ways soon enough."
That made her heart sink a little. She didn't want you to leave. Atleast not for another hour. Or days. Or even longer. Your gorgeous eyes, your gentle heart, soothing voice, just.. everything. She wanted to hold on to you just that bit longer.
Nara felt something again. A.. flutter of sorts. Her gaze lingered over you longer than neccesary, mentally noting you down inch by inch, as if she'd never see you again. Which WAS a very likely possibility.
A possibility she would refuse to let happen.
"D-do you have to leave?" She'd ask out of the blue, making you raise your brow. "Ummm.. and why do you ask that?" You were a bit too suspicious about the Naga now. Not in a bad way necessarily just more-so a bit concerned.
Nara's eyes left yours as she explained: "I-I.. you make me feel funny human... Us Nagas are not meant to be this way towards those we consider prey. From birth, we are taught to be ruthless. Cold-blooded. And uncaring no matter the circumstances. Whether we were claiming lives or witnessing one of our own kind die, we'd merely move on as if nothing happened." The tone in her voice held regret and also confusion. "However, you make me feel different! So much different! You can't just leave me to figure this all out on my own!" Now she was just full-on begging.
You hadn't the slightest clue as to what exactly prompted this obsessive nature in the monster girl. Yeah she had grown to be a bit flirty towards you but this was something else. "P-please..?" Her voice knocks you out of your train of thought. "I don't.. want to feel alone."
A deep sigh escapes you. This was certainly a dilemma if you've ever faced one. Sure you were normally quite smart but this situation had you stumped.
But seeing that expression on the Naga... You felt as if it'd be harsh to not ATLEAST try.
"Ok." You spoke up. "I.. don't want to make false promises. However, I'd be willing to try meeting you here every week or so." Nara's eyes noticeably light up. "R-really? You'd do that for me?!" You assure her with a nod and thumbs up, leading her to give you a BONE-CRUSHING HUG! FUCK! "THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOU-! T-that's what humans say under these circumstances... Right?"
You can't even answer. Because.. well... She was crushing you. "I've.. seen a few humans do this as a means of gratitude." You just let out a weak groan. And luckily she catches on and lets go. "S-sorry!"
"It's.. it's fine." You assure her as you stretch your body. Nothing was actually broken. But any longer and you'd likely have been feeling sore for weeks. After a short while of making sure everything in your body was ok, you both said your goodbyes. You had places to be after all.
True to your word, you continued visiting Nara about each week. You'd talk about whatever, share stories, strengthening your bond, typical friend stuff. But you could tell it meant the world to her.
Until one particular day.
To say this caught you off guard would be an understatement. Granted there were times she flirted with you and you even flirting back. But this was a whole other step.
....But at the same time, it was kind of hard to resist. It's just a kiss. Nothing too crazy.
"Sure. But only one. Ok?"
The Naga almost crushed you with a hug. Again. Luckily you were able to prevent it.
You guided the monster girl into a position, her arms around your neck whilst yours coiled around her waist. She notably inched her body closer to yours, now waist-to-waist with you, which made you both of your faces heat up.
Slowly, and (not) surely, her lips meet yours.
It's.. nice. Gentle. Nothing much but it's more than enough for the two of you.
You both broke away soon after, a pleased smile on both of your faces. "That.. that was nice." You agreed with a nod.
You both said one. Just one.
This one was a bit more intense. Some hand roaming, a few moans flying from her mouth into yours. But it wasn't too intimate.
You pulled away again. Caught your breaths.
This time, you found yourself pushing your tongue into Nara's mouth, giving her a small demonstration of using tongues during kissing. If this could be considered just kissing at this point.
It lasts a bit longer. And when you both pull away, your both panting heavily.
"I love you." The Naga confessed breathlessly.
You didn't respond. Nor did you need to. Words are un-needed at this moment.
Instead you'd both seal the deal another way. In a way I'm sure you're able to guess.
GOT THIS OUT BEFORE 2025 ENDS WOOOOOO
Ok it may be 2026 for some but not yet for me so I count this
Either way, I wish you all a Happy New Year! Here's hoping 2026 is a good year for all of us!