Even wrapped up in his own emotional turmoil and with only one usable eye (the doctors said his vision will come back, but it's not like that means anything right now, and even a perfectly functional eye wouldn't work beneath the all bandages), Zuko notices the roses, and the particularly familiar shape of the school crest. For most of his life he's kept his ring hidden, because something that people know is important is something they will take, but he lives with Uncle Iroh now, and... he's really needed to look at the ring lately. It's just been. Important. It makes him feel...

(Like he has a future. Like someone once looked at him and thought he could be entrusted with a task.)

It makes him feel different. He even wore it today, though now, looking at all the roses on everything, he wonders if that makes him look stupid.

It doesn't make him look stupid! In fact, nobody seems to take notice at all.

As Zuko is leaving his second class of the day, he passes by a window overlooking the greenhouse,

And sees a green-haired upperclassman in the uniform worn only by student council members, slapping a girl across the face.

She's knocked to the ground.

Zuko, in the manner of teenagers, and particularly teenagers who have just undergone a massively stressful event that left physical marks, does not notice them not noticing and is convinced people are staring at him through all of his classes. He can't do anything to make the left side of his face less stare-worthy. He could take the ring off, but even in his current state of tension and self-conciousness he can recognize it's less conspicuous than the bandages, and he doesn't want to lose it. He tries swapping hands, putting it on his left instead of his right so he can put his whole hand in his pocket or under the desk and hide the ring that way, but he quickly realizes he doesn't like having the ring on his blind side and out of sight and switches it back. He doesn't do a very good job at paying attention in either of his first two classes.

He does look out the window at exactly the right (wrong?) time to see someone hitting someone else. His first impulse is to jump out the window. Thankfully, he does not follow this impulse, because even though there's no glass in the window, he is on the second floor. His second impulse is to lean out the window and yell, get someone's attention, but he doesn't know anything about this situation, or if anyone will respond, or really anything about what the consequences of 'getting someone's attention' will be here. So instead, Zuko keeps it simple, and runs towards the nearest stairwell, using his freshly-acquired and deeply mediocre awareness of the school layout to chart something like a path to the greenhouse. He's not entirely sure what he's going to do when he gets there, but he knows this isn't right, and he knows someone should do something. He should do something. He can't just watch that kind of thing happen and move on, and -

Ah. He's made it to the greenhouse. Not quite close enough to physically intervene, yet, but close enough that he can yell "Hey! What are you doing?" and expect to be heard.

Maybe that's not the wittiest or even smartest thing to say, but it's what comes out.

"A lover's quarrel," says the boy. (He's a full head taller than Zuko, and nearly a foot taller than the girl.) "It's none of your concern."

The girl is still on the ground.

It absolutely isn't his concern. Right? This is wrong, but he doesn't know these people. He shouldn't interfere. He shouldn't get involved. This is how he always gets into trouble. It's his first day at school, he can't do this, he shouldn't do this, but he's already in the greenhouse and this is wrong.

"I think you should leave," he says.

Very cautiously, she looks up.

The boy laughs in his face. "Anthy's my Bride. Why should I leave?"

"Because you hit her," Zuko says. Is this upperclassman old enough to be married? It doesn't really change the situation or Zuko's current involvement in it one way or another, but if the upperclassman and the girl - Anthy - are married, probably he's going to get in a different kind of trouble than if they were just dating. Maybe? He's not sure, but that sounds right. Assuming they are married, anyway.

He notices that Anthy is looking up - looking at him? - but his focus remains on the upperclassman.

"You could never understand. The Bride and I are deeply in love, and I don't want to hear complaints from the likes of you. Isn't that right, Anthy?"

"...yes, Saionji-sama."

She does not sound deeply in love. She sounds very meek.

This time, 'bride' sounds more like a title than a specific relationship. Zuko is starting to really recognize that he has no idea what he's walked into. But no amount of context will change that Saionji hit Anthy, and Anthy is still on the ground, and Saionji has not tried to help her up or even directly acknowledged her before just now. "I don't care if you're in love, you hit her. In the face."

Zuko's ring gleams in the light, reflected off the greenhouse glass.

"If you object," says Saionji, "you can duel me."

What.

"Then I'll duel you," Zuko says.

The thing is, he's just been presented with a clear if-then situation. If he objects, he can duel. If he refuses to duel, then he's as good as saying he doesn't object, or that he refuses to stand by his objection. Backing down is unacceptable.

He is, however, acutely aware of the fact that he has no idea what he's just agreed to.

"After classes, then. In the forest behind the school."

He turns and starts to walk away. Anthy, mutely, follows.

"Okay," Zuko says. He feels vaguely like he should do something else, because Anthy is leaving with Saionji, and that's probably not good? But also, he just agreed to a duel, so maybe he should stop right here and right now before he does something worse somehow. "It was nice meeting you," he says to Anthy.

Wow.

The rest of Zuko's free period passes without incident, as do his next two classes.

After his fourth class, though, he's approached by another upperclassman, also in the student council members' uniform.

"Hello. My name is Arisugawa Juri. Saionji tells us you're the new challenger?" 

"My name is Hosokawa Zuko," he says automatically. "Uh, yes?"

"Hm." Her face is impassive. "Do you have a sword?"

...

"... no."

So this is an actual duel. With swords. They have duels here, with swords. The part of Zuko that craves clearly-defined rules and codes of conduct relaxes. The part of Zuko that says 'hey I think this might not be normal' does not.

The corner of her mouth twitches. It might be approaching a smile. "Well, follow me then."

(Zuko's next class starts in five minutes— four, now. Juri's tone does not invite argument.)

Zuko elects not to argue. "Okay," he says. Then, "Thank you for your help," because she is possibly allowing him to borrow a sword, which seems like the kind of thing you should thank people for.