Me: heyy, so I did some research and I got Ursa's story wrong. ;-; but since I'm too lazy to change it, and my story sounds pretty damn good, I'mma leave it like that. :D

I'll be fast forwarding just a bit since if I start from season 1, I guarantee, unless I get a lot of reviews to keep me going, I will not finished the story. By the way…..does anyone know what season and what episode it is when Zuko leaves his ship and starts travelling with Iroh on land? :/ I kinda need to know for my story….yah… thankies :))

Anyway, enjoy the chappy!

His Badness Level

Chapter 2

Spray Bottle

"Gah! What the hell!" Zuko furiously rubbed the droplets of water that had been sprayed on his face.

Ember held in a giggle, but soon straightened her posture and stuck her button nose to the air trying to look sophisticated.

"What was that for!" the scarred teen asked leaning down to her level.

Ember turned around, making her hair whip his face. He sputtered and wiped his mouth. "You refused to play with me, so I sprayed you." She held up a spray bottle that usually contained cleaning liquids but instead held water. Ember shook the bottle and the water swished.

"Why'd you have to spray me?"

Ember turned herself around to face the angry fire bender, "Because, your badness level is unusually high! In order to fix that, I have to spray you with the bottle until you behave! Hence, lowering your badness level!" she exclaimed as she shook the bottle and showed him her picture of him that she drew the other day, the red still colored up to his nose.

Zuko face palmed, "I could care less about my 'badness level'" he placed air quotes around the words, "And another thing, why do you even care?"

Ember shrugged and lowered her hand that held the spray bottle, the neck a little too big for her petite hand to coil her fingers around fully, "I dunno….I just don't want you to end up like the ones who took mama away…..I bet they've never had anyone take their badness level. Not even their mama or their little sister!" Ember crossed her arms over her chest and huffed as she sadly drug her feet across the wooden floor to her room.

Zuko frowned, who exactly was her mother? She never spoke of it since it was her business and Zuko didn't want to intrude- he certainly didn't like it when someone asked about his mother. But this was a five year old child he was talking about! Surely she wouldn't mind if he were to intrude on her business.

~
Ember leaned herself on her small bench that rested right in front of a window that showed mostly the ocean. Granted, it was beautiful, but sometimes it made her sea-sick. Her window was cracked open letting a small cool breeze through to shower her room in. Her room officially smelled like sea salt and pine trees. It was quite appealing to her.

In her hands was the picture she drew of him the day he came to spend time with her in her room. Her bottom lip quivered but she refused to cry- crying was for babies, not fire benders. Well, Ember wasn't sure if she was a fire bender, but that didn't matter. Crying simple wasn't on her list as her mother was from the Fire Nation. Fire Nation people didn't cry.

The man who took Embers mama away from her was a big fat meanie. He grabbed her arm and literally dragged her on the ground away from her mother. Something about that man reminded her of Zuko. It scared her.

Ember didn't want Zuko to end up like that.

She could see the hate in the man's eyes; she tried searching for any signs of regret- remorse. There was none.

She stared at the picture and hugged it close to her chest, trying her best not to crease the paper. She sniffed as the tears she couldn't stop began to flow. She hugged the paper tighter to her chest; she heard a small crinkling sound and stopped as she pulled the paper away. Ember rubbed her tears away but a few stained the paper.

She placed the crinkled piece of paper on the book and tried to flatten it best she could. After, she taped it onto her clipboard.

Ember wiped her nose with the sleeve of her kimono and grabbed her red pencil crayon. She turned her eraser to the page and erased up until his neck. She smiled and rubbed her eyes again.

Embers attention was turned to the knock on the door; she sniffed and rubbed her eyes, "Come in."

Embers sadness diminished as Zuko walked through the door. The ex prince noticed her eyes were a little red and puffy. "Why're you crying?"

Ember shrugged, "Because I was, do I have to have a reason?"

Zuko nodded, "Everyone has a reason for what they do. Like me, I travel to track down the Avatar so I can gain my honour back." He explained and he walked over to her and sat on the floor his chin resting on the bench.

Ember let out a quiet 'oh'.

"This is the quietest I've heard you." Zuko attempted to strike a conversation as he picked up her spray bottle in his hands and sprayed randomly at her bed.

Ember shrugged again, "Why're you here?" she inquired quietly.

"I'll leave if you don't want me here."

She shook her head quickly, "No!"

Zuko relaxed and positioned his hands behind him and out his weight on them as he spread his legs out in front of him. He supposed he would ask about her mother now.

Ember rubbed her nose a final time and picked up the clipboard and rested it on Zukos lap. Zuko fixed his posture and looked at the picture- some of the red had been erased. "Why'd you-"

"Because when I was talking about mama, you didn't ask about it. I think that makes you a better person." Ember responded and cracked a smile in his direction.

Oh, now he felt guilty. He was just about to pry about her mom. Zuko shook his head, and deliberately sprayed himself in the face. Ember raised a curious brow.

"I came here to ask you about your mom." He confessed as he wiped the water from his face and put down the sprayer. Embers smile broke out bigger and she grabbed the clipboard. She picked up her pencil crayon and erased more of the red. The red only went up to below his chest now.

Zuko was perplexed. Even though Ember was just a little girl, she was much more complex than one.

"You were honest with me. You're a bit closer to being the best Zuko ever!" Ember giggled childishly and threw her hands up.

Zukos lips twitched upwards in the slightest fraction- he was glad to see her happy again.

"See! This is your goodness level!" Ember had taken it upon herself to draw uncle Iroh too. Iroh chuckled and took the piece of paper from her hands, "I must say, you are the best artist on this ship." He patted her head and smiled.

Embers eyes sparkled at the praise, and pulled her uncles' hand down to her level. "The white is good and the red is bad." She pointed to the two boxes in the corner of the page which identified 'good' and 'bad'.

Iroh lifted her off the ground and looked at his portrait, "Well, look it that. I have no red!"

Ember nodded, "Mhmm, but Zuko…." She pulled out her clipboard form Agni-knows-where and showed Iroh. Iroh frowned at how high the red was. Then again, this was only a picture drawn by a little girl.

"Don't worry, uncle Iroh. He's getting better, his read used to be all the way up here!" Ember exaggerated and stretched her body upwards as far as she could, her hands marked the air at how 'high the red was' on his nephew. "Now, he's only up here." She lowered her hands and stopped below her chest and pointed to the picture as a reference.

Iroh nodded and chuckled, "I see. Would you like to have tea with me and after perhaps we could play a game of Pai Sho." Ember nodded at the sound of 'game'. She had no idea what Pai Sho was, but it didn't matter to her.

On Irohs way to his quarters to have some tea a bright tower of light shot up in the sky. "Uncle, what's that?" Ember pointed in amazement at the tower of light.

Zuko ran out onto the deck, "It's the Avatar! Follow that light!"

Iroh sighed at his nephew and turned his gaze onto the girl in his arms, "Looks like our Pai Sho and our tea will have to wait."

Uncle Iroh had told her to stay in her room while Zuko did what he needed to do, but when the warriors filed out of their cabins with their armor, curiousness had gotten to the young girl.

She didn't follow them to the door and eaves-drop; all she did was wait on the deck where they were bound to return. Ember sat Indian style on the metal deck and rested her chin on her palm. Impatient, she fiddled with her hair.

"Men!" Ember called out, expecting some warriors to immediately come out of their rooms to assist her. To her surprise, Jun came.

"Jun!" Ember exclaimed, happy to see her favourite warrior. Jun smiled and sat beside her on the deck, "Why, hello there Ember. What're you doing out of your room?"

Ember shrugged, "Curiouser and curiouser." She mumbled inaudibly. Jun raised a brow but thought nothing of her mumbling.

"Can you braid my hair like uncle Iroh?" Ember requested as she pulled her ponytail out and placed it into Jun's palm. Jun was probably the youngest on the ship excluding Zuko and her. He was eighteen with his hair tied back into a sleek, loose ponytail. He was pale just like everyone else on the ship and he had fire in his eyes. Metaphorically speaking, of course.

Jun shrugged, "I'll try, but why don't you tie you hair in a top knot?"

Ember tapped her chin as she felt Jun run his hands through her hair and split it into three equal parts, "I dunno, I don't like being the same, I guess. Life's too short to blend in."

Jun chuckled, "You have been spending too much time with General Iroh. You are beginning to speak quotes like they are mere sentences."

Ember didn't understand what he was saying, but remained quiet and didn't question it.

After the hair was redone, they went their separate ways- Jun back to his room or how fancy people say it- quarters, and Ember back to hers.

Ember sat on her bed and stared at the ceiling in thought. She thought about her mom and her dad. She thought about Gaoling and all the dirt and how shoes hurt her feet since she was raised with no shoes. In Gaoling it didn't matter whether you wore shoes or not. It smelled like pine in Gaoling. Where Ember was now, it just smelled like burnt cupcakes.

Her thoughts strayed eventually over to the Avatar. Zuko spoke a lot of him and how he was to capture him and regain his 'honour'. Ember didn't understand how he could bring back a person with him and then 'restore honour'. She thought he already had honour. What was Zuko and uncle Iroh going to do once they got the Avatar and Zuko regained his honour? She was taken from Gaoling and didn't know a thing about the Fire Nation! Her mama didn't like to talk about the place, so she was completely useless. What if they left her out on the streets to starve and die?

Ember shook her head, Zuko and uncle Iroh would never do that. That was a horrible thing to do.

A guard had intruded her thoughts as he entered her room without permission. "Sorry Ember." He apologized and left a large stick leaning against the wall then disappeared behind her doors into the hall.

Ember sat upright and stared suspiciously at the rod. She walked over to it and picked it up. It was made out of wood and was delicately carved- it was a work of true beauty- even though it was just a rod.

Ember listened if anyone was outside and twirled the rod like a baton. She giggled at her skills of not dropping the rod and she began to alternate hands while keeping the rod spinning.

"I am soooo good." Ember boasted to herself.

Ember stopped and held it out in front of her vertically, the tip still not touching the ground. She sighed happily, well that was one way to clear her mind. She slammed the tip of the rod ground and wings burst from the rod, "Ahh!" startled, Ember dropped the rod.

When her heartbeat settled down she hesitantly picked it up, "Woah…..it's-it's…I don't even know what it is, but it's so cool!" she squeal as she held it by the middle and ran around her room pretending to fly.

~
"Where is it? Where is it?" Aang mumbled to himself as he opened each and every door he came across. The Fire Nation warriors took his glider and put it in some room, Aang just couldn't find it! He had to work fast though; it was only a matter of time before they trapped him.

"Wee!"

Aang abruptly stopped at the sound of a little girls giggle, "Whoosh!" he heard the knocking of some books and some jumping on the bed. After a moments' hesitation he opened the door.

The little girl with braided onyx hair had her back facing towards him, she sighed frustrated, "Didn't anyone tell you guards or warriors or whatever, to knock!"

Aang laughed nervously, "Oh, I'm sorry- I didn't mean to-"

The girl had a surprised expression on her face but quickly shook her head, "No need to apologize." She slammed the glider on the floor and the wings closed up, "I'm guessing this is yours?"

Aang nodded happily, "Thank you! You found my glider!"

The little girl tilted her head, "So it's called a glider…."

Aang nodded but soon heard footsteps behind him, "Sorry, but I have to go."

"Wait!" the little girl called out to Aang, "I have a faster, secret way to the deck." She pointed to her really big window by her bench in her room.

"Thanks, but I really need to be going." The bald boy told her with an apologetic smile.

Ember smiled and nodded, "Hurry then, the guards will be here soon."

The baldy opened his glider and prepared for flight, "If we ever see each other again, you must tell me the story of how such a sweet girl like you is on a ship like this." He flashed her a toothy grin as Ember nodded, not fully understanding what he meant, but asked no questions.

As he took off, Ember remembered something vital.

"I never got your name!" she called out as loudly as she could.

He looked down, "Aang! My names' Aang." he responded and flashed yet another toothy grin.

Ember smiled at the enthused boy- he was nothing like Zuko. In fact, he was the opposite.

Zuko burst through the doors and glared at the bald boy as he was getting away on his glider. He looked at me then at him. He turned his attention back to the boy and ran after him; he jumped high and grabbed him by the ankle.

"Ember, you need to get out of here right now."

Jun grabbed her by the arm and covered her eyes as he pulled her to the safety of her room.

Unknown to her, the bald boy watched in worry for a split second until focusing back on Zuko.

~
TBC