The sight of the two boys laughing fell with a very different meaning on the rest of the students.
"Oh, Dudley, you're just so brilliant!" a mocking voice, imitating Hermione's high-pitched tone, echoed from the Gryffindor section.
The voice wasn't loud, but it hung in the air, rippling across the classroom. A hushed wave of giggling swept through the crowd. The mockery was impossible to miss. Over in the Slytherin section, everything went completely silent. Every Slytherin student had the same thought: "Gryffindors, how very brave of you." This wasn't a compliment, but a jab at their recklessness. They just sat quietly, waiting for the show to begin. They couldn't be the only ones to get a thrashing, after all.
Dudley's face remained impassive as he calmly looked over at the Gryffindor side, trying to pinpoint the source. Class was still in session, and it was just one little comment. It wasn't worth causing a scene over... at least, not yet. The accent told him it was a young wizard. Dudley saw Hermione give him a subtle shake of the head, letting him know she could handle it. He could read the stubbornness in her eyes, a look he knew well from their days at Oxford Dragon Elementary.
Harry's face darkened. Dudley was his brother, and Hermione was his friend. Malfoy's expression was grim as he stared over at the Gryffindors, lost in thought. Only Professor Flitwick seemed completely unaware, still absorbed in his Charms lesson. Well, and Ron, who was still poking the feather on his desk with his wand. He looked around in a daze, wondering why everything had gone so quiet.
The tense atmosphere continued until the bell rang. No harm done, to the Slytherins' disappointment.
Professor Flitwick announced the homework and rushed off. He had to get to his fifth-year students for their outdoor Charms practical. Hermione had just finished packing her books when a figure suddenly crashed into her from behind. A powerful shoulder slammed into her, knocking her off balance. She tumbled to the floor, her neatly stacked books scattering everywhere.
"Oh, sorry, Miss Know-it-all. Are you all right?" the wizard said, though the apology was clearly dripping with mockery. "What's wrong with you, standing there and blocking the way?"
Three young Gryffindor wizards, their arms slung around each other's shoulders, stood there smirking at Hermione. Behind them were two girls.
"We warned you, didn't we, Miss Know-it-all? Don't get too friendly with certain people," one of the boys said.
"Next time, it won't just be a missing shoe or lost books," another added.
"I bet Miss Know-it-all doesn't have many clothes," a girl whispered to Hermione, leaning down. "It's normal for a rat to chew up clothes in the castle, you know."
A missing shoe could be replaced, and a lost book could be replaced by an old one from a graduate, but if your clothes were ruined... The girl looked up with a haughty expression. The boys snickered.
"Look at that, her hair is a complete mess, like a bird's nest."
"And her front teeth... they're like a beaver's!"
"Right, Miss Beaver! Ha, ha, ha!"
The two girls laughed cruelly, and the three boys joined in with their own insults. Just as they turned to leave, the boy in front took a step and ran straight into what felt like a wall.
"Oof!" he groaned, bouncing off and landing right on his backside. The wizards behind him tumbled like dominoes, since they'd all been focused on Hermione.
How could there be a wall here?
It wasn't a wall at all. It was Dudley. He was standing over them, glaring down at them. From their conversation, Dudley had figured out exactly what was going on. This was bullying, plain and simple. Just like what happened to him when he first got to Slytherin. The only difference was that he was bullied for crossing a "pure-blood," and Hermione was being targeted because she was a Muggle-born who hung out with a Slytherin. In the end, it was all the same kind of rotten behavior.
"What do you want?" one of the wizards shrieked, like an angry chihuahua, trying to sound tough. But as everyone knows, chihuahuas are all bark and no bite. They look like they could take on anything but are completely useless.
"That's what I'd like to ask you," Dudley said, his voice slow and calm as he leaned in closer. He'd noticed Hermione was wearing different shoes, but she hadn't said anything, so he hadn't asked.
"First, you owe her an apology. Second, I think we need to have a little discussion about those shoes," Dudley said, his words measured and distinct. "And third... I believe you need to learn some respect. 'Miss Beaver' is a name that even I wouldn't use."
"Dursley, you're standing up for her?" one of the girls shouted. "Don't think we're scared of you! There are five of us!"
Her voice wavered on that last point. From a distance, Dudley just looked like a wizard who was uncommonly large for a first-year. But up close, they could feel an icy chill creep up from their toes. This was about more than just brute strength. Dudley simply gave the girl a cold stare. Just one look... a single, powerful look.
It was as if she'd been spotted by some terrifying beast, its jaws wide and ready to swallow her whole. The air turned to ice, and the blood in her veins felt like it had frozen solid. She couldn't even breathe.
A wizard's presence is a strange thing. Take Snape, for example. Many Gryffindors saw him as a "greasy old bat" who spoke in a low voice, but his words held a kind of magic that made you listen and obey. Even the Weasley twins wouldn't dare mess around in his class.
Under Dudley's gaze, the two girls and three boys began to tremble. This was in a classroom, surrounded by other students. If they were alone, they wouldn't have even had the courage to stand up. "Brave Gryffindors," indeed.
A clever thought occurred to the first girl. "That's right, we're in a classroom, and it's full of Gryffindors!" she shrieked, her voice several times louder than before. "Slytherin, what are you doing? Are you trying to bully a Gryffindor?"
It was a smart move. Gryffindors are often a scattered bunch, but they'll always pull together for one thing: a fight against a Slytherin. At her shout, the Gryffindors who were leaving or had already left stopped and turned to stare at Dudley and his group. Soon enough, a crowd had gathered.
See? the Gryffindors thought, feeling their courage return. Look how many of us there are. You're in for it now.
But what good are numbers in a place like this? In my experience, jerks can be found anywhere. It has nothing to do with what house you're in, where you're from, or your bloodline. A certain James Potter was a bully, too. He went after a Slytherin, but if that Slytherin had been in Gryffindor, would he have left him alone since he was so close to Lily?
If you want to argue that no such people exist in Gryffindor, then, of course, you're absolutely right.