#zhayu

[trashfactorysstuff]

I love fire nation/water tribe ships.

#azutara #hakozai #zhayu

[ohyeahitsrarepairtime]

Rendering be tricky, here’s the fried fish wip so far

#zhayu #fried fish #losing my MIND over this one #so pretty but driving me CRAZY

[whimsiigothic]

[the first time he made her laugh]

ID in alt

#ok i fixed some things #anyways #ZHAYU #HELL YEA #i don't usually do digital art (can you tell) but! i liked this one #zhao is so whipped but he doesn't realize it yet #zhao #yue #giving zhao gray streaks cause i can #repost

[chocolate-cringymuffin]

I have decided everyone who rejects canon should be classified as "Canon inmune".

And I offer myself as the first volunteer to enter in this category.

#tlok #amorra #noarra #korrlok #irohsami #amorralok #azulaang #yuetara #zhayu

[snoffyy]

Chasm

There were creatures in the ocean. This, Yue had known all her life. Turtle seals, whale-walruses, koala otters… these were creatures everyone within the tribe was familiar with. Revered them, in a way. They gave her people food, warmth, clothing, tools. Every creature had purpose, and every purpose was thanked. Here, in the harsh, biting cold, their lives depended on it.

But there were other creatures. Stories of humans with fish tails. Translucent fins, scintillating scales, sleek, powerful muscles. They’d fascinated Yue when she was younger, and though there was enough evidence to prove these creatures were out there, most people went a lifetime without catching a glimpse of them.

Mermaids.

Every region of the world hosted them. Even in the bitter poles, they were there. Somewhere out there, at least.

Sometimes, Yue wondered if they led much more different lives than their land-dwelling counterparts.

Or, at least, Yue thought, as she clasped the betrothal necklace chained around her throat, if they led easier lives.

.

Ever since her engagement had been announced, Yue found herself wandering to the edge of the city to stare at the sunset, as if to count down the days of relative freedom she had left. It was peaceful outside of the towering walls, and the waters had always looked so pretty under the light of the setting sun.

“It’s my duty,” Yue said unconvincingly to the lapping waters. “I have to marry him. If I don’t, it will cause strife within the tribe. I have to. I must.”

The waters didn’t reply, of course.

“We can cooperate,” Yue continued. “My father wouldn’t have approved the betrothal if Hahn was unreasonable. I’m sure, at the very least, we can unite our interests in protecting the city.”

Below the waters, Yue thought she saw the shadowy mass of a seal animal flit briefly.

“The only reason my father would break the engagement is if Hahn did something truly terrible or if… I don’t know, he was accidentally killed during a hunt.”

A splash, and gentle ripples spread in a circular pattern. Yue smiled slightly. So she was correct; there had been an animal lurking within the waters.

“I shouldn’t say that,” Yue chided herself. “That’s horrible.”

.

Day after day, she returned to the waters, sometimes sitting in silence, sometimes talking about her day. More often than not, she’d unspool her thoughts about her impending marriage to Hahn. And without fail, the same animal she’d spotted that day would accompany her. She never managed to discern what animal it was, but she’d spy hints of it, from the dark mass travelling beneath the ice to the ripples and splashes it would make as if to agree with her words.

It was likely a large animal if the size of the splashes were any indication. She knew little else. Of its colouring, of its shape, of anything that could’ve given a hint as to what she was spilling her thoughts to.

One day, Yue had brought along a piece of raw meat, curious to see if it was a carnivorous animal. She’d tossed it into the water close to where she had seen the last indication of a splash before she returned home.

What a surprise it was to see the meat sitting on the ice the next day, completely untouched. As soon as she peered over the edge of the ice, a large splash caught her right in the face, the sound of a tail slapping against the water the only confirmation that it was the creature clearly miffed by her offering.

Raw seaweed? Tossed back.

Seal blubber? A tentative nibble taken out of a corner before it was left on the ice as well.

Finally, she brought a bowl of soup, setting it next to the water’s edge as if in offering.

The next day, an empty bowl greeted her.

It was amusing, in a way. Though Yue had to wonder what sort of high-intelligence animal had been keeping her company.

“What are you?” she finally asked after a week of leaving plated meals. “Who are you?”

A splash, and in the sunset, Yue stared, wide-eyed, as a long tail arched out of the ocean, water sluicing off glimmering crimson scales. It was nothing she had ever seen before. An indescribable beauty, almost otherworldly…

And then it was gone, slipping back into the water silently.

“Mermaid…” she breathed.

.

It was her secret, and it was supposed to remain her secret. Though the mermaid never fully revealed themselves, they seemed to be more comfortable with showing off their tail, lazily flicking it above the waves every so often or even giving her a glimpse as they dove into the depths.

Sometimes, if she was very lucky, she’d even see a flash of pale skin.

But she should’ve known that Hahn would grow curious. He’d been curious for a while, asking – no, demanding – to know where she ran off to at the end of every day.

She just hadn’t anticipated that he’d follow her.

“So this is what you’ve been doing every day?”

Yue paled, turning around to see Hahn pinning her with a fathomless stare.

“You’re giving our food to some animal?” Hahn scoffed. Then he seemed to remember himself, and a sickly-sweet smile spread across his face. “Sorry. I just meant, Yue, surely if you wanted to feed the animals, it’d be better to give them scraps instead?”

“They… have different tastes,” Yue managed.

“They’re just animals,” Hahn sighed. “They’ll be happy with bones. Besides, all animals are good for is for food and clothing. You know this, Yue.”

“They’re not…” Yue bit her lip. “Never mind.”

“Come on, let’s go.”

Yue reluctantly turned to head back with her fiancé, though not without gently setting the bowl of stew on the ice.

.

A week before the wedding, Hahn followed her out onto the ice again, this time with a spear.

“What are you doing with that?” Yue asked warily, hesitant to peer over the edge as she usually would.

Hahn smirked, flicking his hair out of his face. “Hunting. The wedding is in a week, and I’m supposed to provide the centrepiece of the banquet.”

“Right,” Yue said guardedly. “What are you planning on hunting?”

Her heart sank when Hahn approached the edge of the ice, the gleaming edge of the spear made sharper yet under the rays of the setting sun.

“I came out the other day at noon,” Hahn grinned. “And I saw something move underwater. It must’ve been your little friend. Red scales, too. There isn’t anything here that has red scales. Something that exotic would make our wedding the wedding of the century.”

“You can’t!” Yue protested. “That’s not a simple-minded animal, it’s… it’s…”

“It’s what, Yue?” Hahn asked, scanning the waters. “Come on, you can’t possibly think it’s a pet.”

“No,” Yue grabbed his arm, “but trust me when I say you can’t. Please, don’t do this. There are other animals that you can hunt, just not this one.”

Hahn’s eyes hardened. “Let go, Yue. You don’t know what you’re talking about. I knew I should’ve brought this up with your father. Do you even know what animal it is?”

“It’s not an animal,” Yue admitted. “Hahn, you can’t kill them.”

“Them?” Hahn echoed.

He was to be her husband, wasn’t he? It made sense to trust him, to divulge her secrets. How else was a relationship supposed to work? But reluctance stayed her hand, and she found herself at a loss for words.

“You can’t,” she repeated weakly.

And then, a trill.

Melodic, deep, crooning. Yue had heard many a song in her life. The greatest musicians in the Northern Water Tribe had sung at grand celebrations, fantastic orators reciting poems and stories of old. And yet none of them could compare to what she was hearing.

Hahn, on the other hand, was completely entranced. Enthralled in a way that was unnatural. Certainly not in the way he dropped his spear, stumbling closer to the edge, his eyes fixated on something in the water.

“Hahn,” Yue tugged at his arm, trying to shake off the reverie. “Hahn, get away from the water.”

“No,” Hahn murmured. “No. Let me go. I… I need to go to… I need to…”

Something, someone, crested out of the ocean. A head of brown hair, amber eyes, a proud nose. A man.

A man? Human?

No. A smattering of red scales crawled up the man’s neck, as crimson as the tail Yue had seen over the past few weeks.

Mermaid?

The man opened his mouth, revealing sharp teeth.

And then he sang.

Hahn tore himself out of Yue’s grip, diving into the water in a mad scramble. She shouted in alarm, reaching out for him, but her hand missed him by miles, and with a resounding splash, Hahn started desperately swimming towards the man.

And the man… the merman, dove towards Hahn, still trilling that haunting melody. It happened faster than Yue could comprehend. One moment Hahn was bobbing in the water, and the next, he was gone, dragged into the depths, not even a spread of blood in the water to indicate he was ever there.

Neither Hahn nor the merman resurfaced again.

.

She blamed it on a piranha shark.

Her father accepted the explanation after one look at her tear-streaked face. The rest of the tribe too believed her story after Hahn’s corpse was fished out of the ocean the next day, several bites taken out of him, piranha shark teeth embedded into the open wounds.

Too ambitious, she heard the warriors sigh as they dressed his body. He shouldn’t have tried to hunt a piranha shark. Land animals would have been easier. At least he’d have more of a chance on the tundra.

Two weeks later, Yue returned to the ice edge.

She hadn’t even needed to wait a minute before the man appeared before her, resting his arms on the ice. Amber eyes peered at her curiously, surprisingly warm for someone who clearly had no qualms drowning a person.

“Why did you do it?” Yue asked.

The merman lifted a brow in amusement. “He wanted to kill me.”

His voice was deep. It had no underlying musical quality to it, unlike that night. But Yue still remained wary, making sure she was more than an arm’s length away from the water.

“I was going to stop him.”

The merman hummed, tail flicking behind him. His fins were broad, powerful, sending a strong ripple with such a lackadaisical action. “Hmm. I’m sure.”

“I didn’t know mermen could be so violent,” Yue admitted.

At that, he perked up, grinning as if she had unwittingly told a joke that only he understood.

“Merman,” he repeated, chuckling. “How quaint.”

Then he trilled once more, and the same thrall from that night overtook her. But before she could attempt to shake it off, he vanished into the waters, leaving her alone once more.

She had an epiphany, then. The trills, the singing, the drowning…

She paled. How could she forget? Mermaids dominated the fantastical tales she adored, but there were other creatures out there. Other creatures that did not possess nearly the same innocent reputation mermaids did.

No, not merman, indeed.

Siren.

#hahahaha me with my weird ass ideas in the middle of the night #zhayu #fried fish #although the fish is taken a little too literally #but listen #i have thoughts #why is yue not as affected? mebbe cos she has a form of spiritual protection #and zhao idk why he's in the north #but hey he got free food

[proxissima]

Ozai/Zhao/Yue love triangle, except Yue may or may not be jealous whenever Zhao is around Ozai.

Yue knows she shouldn't care about how Zhao acts around the Firelord. One had gotten her into this mess in the first place, a marriage to secure the "alliance" between her tribe and the Fire Nation, and the other had been the one to officiate the ceremony.

And she doesn't care about it- for the first few months she's glad the admiral's attention lies elsewhere. It's only over time that her sentiments slowly start to shift.

Something about how Zhao seems to metaphorically drop everything the moment the Firelord is mentioned, when he bows longer than necessary before Ozai, and when he addresses him as "My lord", "My liege" with a tone a little too revering... it begins to frustrate Yue.

It doesn't help that she can't quite point a finger on whether or not the relationship of the two had actually ever gone beyond what would be considered appropriate – Ozai never appears to be bothered by it, despite being generally contemptuous otherwise – or if it's nothing more than woefully one-sided.

Ozai, by then, has taken notice of Yue's irritation. She might've been able to hide it expertly from others (Zhao certainly has no clue), as she had been born into and raised as royalty, as well, but he still has more than twice as much experience to show for and grew up in an environment significantly more competitive than hers.

She can't deceive him.

And what does he do about it? Ozai, bored by the lull following the acquisition of the Northern Water Tribe, decides to play and have a little fun...with both of them.

#zhao #yue #zhayu #yuzai #? #au stuff #ozai #zhaozai #atla

[towiwi]

#Zhayu #I dont have a context #He loved her so much he ate her

[queer-apocalypse]

Zhayu as Bernini's "Rape of Proserpina" anyone? No?

#atla #admiral zhao #princess yue #zhayu #if i ever learn how to draw it's over for you bitches

[moneneki]

Since you’ve written so many amazing big-brained ATLA rarepairs, which would you say are your favorites?

Hello and thanks a lot for both the complilment AND the ask!! I just love so much your Irosami content 😭😭😭

As for my favorite ATLA rarepairs... It's a but hard to say, but I'm extremely fond of Zhayu (also of Yue/Zuko but I don't know if it still counts as a rarepair) and Azula/Kuei, I just find those dynamics fascinating.

But as an important note, I love with my whole heart all the tags I've contributed the first work to! Now that I go through my AO3 profile I realize those are a few already 😂 but in particular, Hahn/Toph and Jin/Kuei. There's the very specific AU about Poppy Beifong/Zhao that I started writing as a crack fic joke and then it turned into a serious thing for me 😅

Thanks again, and sorry it took me so long to get to answer!!

#i Think i've created 6 tags? #I'm very proud of those #thanks for the ask!! #moneneki answers #moneneki #zhayu #yue x zuko #azula/kuei #Hahn/Toph #Jin/Kuei #Poppy Beifong/Zhao

[orangepanic]

New Fic: Firevision

Written for @zhaozaipalooza day 2 prompt, Rock Band AU, which was just too delightful to pass up.

Firevision Zhao/Yue Rated G Summary: Zhao is sent on a mission to put rival band Avatar in their place. Who he finds instead changes his strategy entirely.

#zhaozai palooza 2022 #zhao #yue #zhayu #atla #fanfic #rock band au #this fic is 0% serious #fried fish

[writebecauseyoucannotbreathe]

Thoughts on Zhayu?

No one ever asks me about Azulaang 😭

I'd recommend reading @crookedmouth-mountainbones zhayu fanfics. She's a good writer. She once drafted an amazing arranged marriage Azulaang Zhayu snippet that she refuses to share to mortal eyes besides mine. It was hilarious. Imma talk about it here so maybe someone can convince her to post it lol

Basically I mention a hc of the fire nation being very private romantically because they dont want to be emotionally vulnerable. So Azula thinks that marriage is simply an exchange of titles. To assume more would be presumptious. Aang meanwhile as an Air Nomads doesn't recognize a marriage certificate as anything more than ink on a page. To be married one must satisfy the other basically, but Azula doesnt seem to pick up on that and he's not the most direct.

So he asks Zhao for advice...

Zhao is tortured by this conversation. Absolutely tortured. How dare the Avatar ask him for bedroom advice with the Crown Princess. And in front of sweet innocent Yue no less (Someone who Zhao is certain does not want to be in such an arrangement with him and he's been surprisingly respectful about it). Yue meanwhile is all giddy because she had a similar problem with Zhao not understanding that there are maritial needs that must be met even if the marriage is solely political. She gives Aang a naughty scroll and Zhao dies six ways internally before his esteemed guests finally leave. 10/10 go read her fanfics

#my asks #azulaang #zhayu

[trashfactorysstuff]

Hann 0 - Zhao 1

Get recked Hann, no one likes you.

#zhayu #lil context: Zhao kicks Hann lol #Zhao be not even trying with Hann #he never did #Zhao must most probably protect Yue at all cost #man is loyal to his principles 🤙

[ohyeahitsrarepairtime]

Push & Pull 🌗

#zhayu #atla #spirit world au my beloved #fried fish

[authorjoydragon]

Top five weird rare pair canoes

OH MAN. this is a tough question. I will pick true canoes with very little content. (And just ATLA fandom to narrow it down)

1. Is of course, teoaang.

2. Tyshot (Ty Lee/Longshot)

3. I’m a secret lover of Zhao/Yue simply bc of the artwork and fics. They won me over.

4. Jun/Mai

5. Katara/Haru (I really adore them and I very rarely see any content for them 😭)

Bonus: Kantoph! (Kanto/Toph) I love this one bc of the endless possibilities. Who is Kanto?

#ask joy #top five game #rare pair woes #i love these little canoes #teoaang #Tyshot #zhayu #junmai #harutara #kantoph

[snoffyy]

New Zhayu AU

Zhao is a moderately successful podcast host and narrator with a show that straddles history, spiritualism, military practice through the ages, philosophy, and — weirdly — all things astronomical. Not horoscopes, but more of a Farmer’s Almanac approach to lunar phases and how various cultures may have interpreted seasons and calendars according to the night sky.

Yue is a grad student studying politics (?), medicine (?), arctic climate conservation (?) and is recommended the podcast by a friend who admits: “I don’t really know anything about what he talks about, I just find his voice puts me to sleep.”

Stressed from school and naturally interested in at least a few of his talking points, Yue subscribes and turns into an avid listener.

Sorry for the delay in answering!

tbh I don't listen to podcasts myself; never managed to get into them. But I love the idea, especially with the fact Zhao would definitely use a podcast as his outlet to nerd out lmao.

Below is a little something I tinkered with based on the AU hehe:

“No idea who this guy is, but he puts me to sleep – not because he’s boring or anything! Although, heh, okay, fine, I don’t always understand what he’s talking about. He’s into a lot of niche topics. Anyway! I know you’ve been looking for new podcasts, and this guy has a really soothing voice. You’ll know what I mean.”

She’d been curious the first time. Late in the night, having submitted her assignment at 2:32 AM, her fingers aching and her brain in a fog. She was a night owl anyway. But even so, the adrenaline-fuelled wave that had carried her through her mad dash to get her assignment completed hadn’t yet subsided.

Without anything else to do, she’d looked up the podcast her friend had recommended and selected the most recent one. The description had told her it was on the Old Farmer’s Almanac and how it differed from the modern versions. It seemed to be an incredibly dry topic, but Yue had thought to give it a chance when she noticed that the podcast had a surprisingly high following.

It started there. When the host began talking about how the changes in weather patterns could be chalked up to climate change and how the constellations had differed in position since then because of a natural phenomenon called precession, Yue found herself finishing the episode in the blink of an eye before mindlessly scrolling back down and starting from the very first one.

The Knowledge Seeker was what the podcast was called. An apt name, she thought, when the host would discuss topics she’d barely, if ever, given thought to at all. It almost became a game to figure out who this guy was just from listening to his voice and picking apart the topics he’d chosen. He likely had a military background, given the familiar, knowing way he’d spoken about the origins of naval slang, and how the insight he had when talking about past battles was unparalleled.

Over time, she slowly familiarised herself with his speaking habits. The confident drawl of his words, the thoughtful pauses between sentences, the way he enunciated every syllable, forming each word with clarity and precision. He spoke like he was used to speaking to large crowds, the cadence of his voice mesmerising and compelling her to hang onto his every word.

Yue had no idea when or how her obsession started, but the podcast became her solace on bad days, a balm to her weariness, and a release from the stress of studying.

“… animals have long played a role in military settings,” the host was saying in this week’s episode, several months after she had first subscribed. “In fact, and this is a personal story of mine, I suppose I should divulge the meaning behind this podcast’s name.”

Yue straightened up, setting down her pencil. Whoever the host was, he was a reclusive man, rarely letting slip of anything about his personal life.

“When I left the navy, I left with, um, PTSD. About a year after I left, my friend called me and said he was bringing something over to me: a puppy he’d found in a box behind the public library. I was in a bad state at the time and reacted poorly to the news. But, stubborn bastard he is, he brought the dog over and, well, I guess the dog grew on me because he’s still with me now. In fact, he’s currently sitting on my feet because holding me hostage is apparently his favourite way of taking a nap.”

A chuckle, and Yue was not ashamed to admit she’d replayed it several times over.

“His name is Seeker. He’s the cutest fucking thing in the world as well as the most spoilt thing. I suppose the latter is on me. I never learned how to say no when my friend brought him over, and I never managed to learn after that.”

Yue couldn’t help cracking a smile. Somehow, she couldn’t imagine him as a doting pet owner, but here he was, rambling on about his dog’s annoying habits with an obviously fond voice. Eventually, he must’ve realised that he had gone off on a tangent, as he abruptly cleared his throat and returned to discussing messenger birds.

.

She was standing directly behind a man at one of the local coffeeshops, wondering if she should try sneak a photo of his adorable dog. It looked like a Shiba Inu, curled tail wiggling excitedly as it rested its front paws against the counter wall. A red collar was barely visible around its neck, buried by a thick scarf of fur.

Yue really wanted to sink her fingers into that fur.

“Black coffee and a little something for your pupper,” the barista’s voice broke Yue out of her canine reverie as she looked back up just in time to see the man accept his cup of coffee along with a smaller cup filled with whipped cream.

“Thank you.”

His voice was deep, honeyed and warm. There was something familiar about his voice, but Yue couldn’t put her finger on it. Maybe she’d heard it in passing one time on campus. This was a coffeeshop beloved by students, after all. Although, the man did sound like he was older. Maybe a professor?

She didn’t catch any glimpse of his face. Only the slope of broad shoulders, a ramrod straight back, and neatly combed brown hair. But what truly caught her attention was when, as the man stepped out of the coffeeshop, he clicked his fingers at his dog and said –

“Come on, Seeker.”

The world seemed to slow around her as Yue whipped her head back towards the man, craning desperately to see if she could, just for a moment, catch sight of his face. But it was too late. A swarm of students passed by, swallowing up man and dog from view.

Oh, come on.

Yue internally cursed at herself. Figures the one time she did manage to coincidentally stumble upon the elusive podcast host, she failed to recognise his voice despite listening to it almost every night. For who else could it have been? She’d practically engrained his voice into her head, and yet – and yet…

“Coffee’s ready, miss.”

Yue jerked her head up, meeting the friendly gaze of the barista who plonked her sugary concoction onto the counter.

“Oh – thanks,” she stuttered. “Sorry, I was lost in thought.”

The barista winked. “The dog?”

Yue stubbornly denied the heat clawing up her neck. “Yes, the dog.”

“He comes in every Friday afternoon,” the barista said slyly. “Always with his dog. You should say ‘hi’ sometime. He’s grumpy, but he means well.”

“The dog, you mean?” Yue said somewhat drily.

The barista’s smile broadened.

Yue was about to say something else, when, catching sight of the clock on the wall, her heart nearly jolted to a stop.

“Thanks for the drink,” she said hurriedly, snatching her frappe. She had five minutes before class started, and the lecture theatre was on the other side of campus. There was no time to be thinking of cute dogs and cute men right now.

No, not cute men. She didn’t even see his face.

Yue ducked out of the coffeeshop to join the teeming mass of students, picking up the pace as the minutes started ticking down.

And if anyone asked; no, she had not been on the lookout for tall men or fluffy dogs during her sprint across campus.

#thank you! #zhayu #fried fish #idk it'd be cool if zhao was somehow a professor in a really small field as well or smthg #set up for a cliche teacher/student romance?? #perhaps XD #also zhao owns an instagram account where all he does is post photos of seeker #maybe that also has a large following too HAHA

[moonsugar-and-spice]

Recently found and read your fic Storms of Ice and Fire and can I just say while I was hesitant at first, damn you made a believer out of me cuz boy I was not expecting this caliber of fic from a pairing like this. The fantasy and worldbuilding slaps harder than donkey kong, if you ever write and publish original stuff I'll be lining up to read it.

Speaking of - your OC Lu Da is the olive in the Storms martini I don't normally get that into OCs but he is on another level. You managed to give Ozai a buddy and a likeable one at that, I wanna go on all the adventures with this legend. Excited seeing all the different asks and art of him too.

Welcome aboard the S.S. Ozara! A rowboat with a small but dedicated crew. (*Waves to the nearby S.S. Zhayu*)

Ah, this is so nice, thank you! I'm very glad you have been enjoying it (even if it's been 84 years since I've updated and I'M SO SORRY to everyone, but I do plan to finish it).

And I am touched to know that you like Lu Da! It has been an incredibly fun journey writing him, through his inception and all the various iterations up to now. There is no greater honor as a writer than knowing others have connected with a character you breathed life into.

#this made my day #thank you! #ozara #storms of ice and fire #atla fanfiction #lu da #atla oc #'slaps harder than donkey kong' gave me a good chuckle. you've played smash bros i presume? 😆