Preschool Bully

Today is the first time I have ever wanted to conk a child on the head with an umbrella. I never before wanted to swing a parasol right across a mother's face; that was until today. This morning was Chance's second day of school. The morning went smoothly and he was excited to head off to class. He was fine until we entered the classroom and he noticed that for the second day in a row he was assigned to a center alone with the bully. He suddenly became nervous, anxious and complained of a stomach ache. I knew immediately that the "mean boy" he was referring to yesterday was the source of anxiety.
There is always one in every class. Who knew that a four year old could be so evil? The day of orientation we had some indication that this child was the rowdy one. Yesterday picking Chance up from school I noticed a swarm of concerned mothers discussing the behavior of this boy with his mother. I over heard her saying "well, he is a boy, all boy. That's what boys do". I thought to myself wow already on the first day there are parents complaining about this kid.
This morning I noticed the "mean boy" glaring at and making faces at Chance. Chance was visibly upset about this situation and he began to cry and begged me to stay. With this ammunition he began mocking Chance. I looked at the boy and said that's not a nice face. Then this little four year old gave me dagger eyes trying to intimidate me. As his mother stood there beside him, oblivious to her son's behavior, she took no action. Trying to console my son I loudly told him to stand up for himself and to let the teacher know that the boy was being mean if it did not stop. I told him, also loud enough for Mommy to hear, that perhaps the teacher put them together because she knows what great manners he has and that maybe she needed help showing the boy how to use his manners. The mother said nothing.
I let the teacher know that we were having a rough exit his morning and I was off leaving my son crying, waving to me out the window. I again was upset all morning worried about my baby. I want him to learn early on how to deal with challenging personalities and bullying. I know that he is sure to face ridicule in his life but, come on he's only 4. I was prepared to deal with teasing about having an alternative family, not just the play yard bully.
I was surprised with how defensive and protective I got. I know he has to learn to fight his own battles but my Mommyness kicks in and I can't help but step in. By the end of the day Chance said that the boy "turned nice now" and that they had worked things out. I was glad because I don't think that a full out "Mommy Brawl" at the school would have been most graceful event of the year. We all have a lot to learn. Who knew preschool would be so adventurous.