Omashu

 This ship is considered het in the original series and femslash in the Netflix adaptation due to the adaptational change in Shu's gender. For the purposes of this wiki, this article is categorized as non-binary.

Omashu
GENERAL
Avatar: The Last Airbender
Character	Shu
Character	Oma
Canonical?	Canon
Status of Relationship	Lovers; Both are deceased
IN FANDOM
Type (?)	Non-binary

1

Omashu is the non-binary ship between Shu and Oma in the Avatar: The Last Airbender fandom.

Canon

Avatar: The Last Airbender (2005)

Oma and Shu were from enemy villages that were in the middle of a war. They first meet on top of a mountain that divided their villages. At some point, they fell in love with each other, but they were forbidden to be together because their villages were at war. Despite this, their love was strong, and they were determined to find a way to see each other. They became the first two humans to study earthbending from the badgermoles. They created an elaborate tunnel that served as a large labyrinth connecting both sides of the mountain, which later became known as the Cave of Two Lovers. They used crystals that only glowed in the dark to light the way to the exit, and any who tried to follow them became lost in the labyrinth.

One day, Oma went to their usual meeting spot and found that Shu had not returned. He had been killed in the battle between their villages. Oma was devastated by the loss of her lover and unleashed a powerful display of her earthbending powers, but rather than harming anyone else, she delcared the war to be over. The two villages then came to peace and built a new city. The city was named Omashu after the two lovers to pay homage to their love. Oma and Shu were later buried in the Tomb of Two Lovers inside of the cave after Oma eventually passed away, and their tale would be passed on for generations.

Avatar: The Last Airbender (Netflix)

In the Netflix adaptation, Shu was a female instead of a male, while Oma remained a female. As in the original adaptation, the two met in a mountain that divided between their warring villages. They were forbidden from being together due to the war, but were determined to find a way. They learned earthbending from the badgermoles and built an elaborated network of tunnels where they could meet secretly, which eventually became known as the Cave of Two Lovers. One day, Oma did not return, and it was revealed that she was killed in the battle between their villages. Distraught by the loss of her lover, Shu used her earthbending prowess to bring the villagers to their knees, but delcared the war to be over rather than killing them. Together, they built a new city known as Omashu, named in homage to their love.

Songs

Secret Tunnel

Fanon

Omashu has a small amount of popularity in the Avatar fandom. It is overlooked due to being a posthumous story that is only discussed in one episode. However, as the episode they were featured was a popular episode for the development of the Kataang pairing, many fans enjoy their love story and how it helped bring Aang and Katara together. Because they were from enemy villages, Omashu is also popular among Zutara shippers, and is sometimes used to explain future development of Zutara.

When the sequel series, The Legend of Korra revealed that bending was first bestowed to humans by the Lion Turtles, many fans began to question the authenticity of Oma and Shu's story or wondered if it was retconned. However, other fans pointed out that manipulating the elements was not referred to as bending in that time period and that Wan was seen learning firebending moves from a dragon. Fans began to speculate that Oma and Shu were merely the first humans to learn earthbending from the badgermoles, and that the story is true, as Oma and Shu's tomb is found in the Cave of Two Lovers. Most fans agree with the singing nomad Chong's assertion that their story is a 'real legend.'

Fandom

FAN FICTION

Oma/Shu tag on AO3

Oma/Shu tag on FanFiction.Net

TUMBLR

Oma x Shu posts on Tumblr

Trivia

• Omashu is a rare in-universe use of a shipping portmanteau, as it was used to name the City of Omashu after the two lovers.
• The phrase "In the name of Oma's bastard children" was known to have been used to express annoyance during the era of Avatar Kyoshi. This has led to speculation that Shu got Oma pregnant before he died.