The second time Harry meets Matthew Gamp (that isn't saying 'Hello' in the corridor) is at the World Cup.
He, Hermione, and Ron had almost been hit by about twenty stunners and were now looking into the slightly mad looking eyes of Mr Crouch.
"Which of you did it?" Mr Crouch snapped, his sharp eyes darting between them "Which of you conjured the dark mark?"
Harry was about to retort, a bit put-out that they were getting blamed, when suddenly he heard the voice of Matthew Gamp behind him.
"Have you lost your mind, Crouch?" Gamp demanded, his bright blue eyes glaring across the room. A few of the witches and wizards behind Crouch raised an eyebrow or two at that, and Harry couldn't say he blamed them; he was talking to a high-up ministry official after all. "This isn't the war. You can't just go around interrogating children without their guardian's consent, Crouch."
"This is terrorism!" Crouch shouted, his eyes popping "I'll interrogate them to find the culprit. You just watch me."
Gamp seems to consider something, before stepping in front of Harry, his eyes narrowed, and his wand raised "You'll have to go through me first. And somehow, I don't think the Wizengamot's going to blame me for protecting the Boy-Who-Lived's rights."
Crouch seemed ready to shout, but a witch in a long, woollen dressing-grown cut him off with a half-whispered "Barty…He's right. You could lose your job over this."
That seemed to stop Crouch short, and in the ensuing silence, Hermione took her chance to shakily say, "Someone said the incantation…over there…behind the trees."
Hermione pointed somewhere to Harry's left where they had originally heard the voice. The wizards and witches behind Crouch turn towards the direction that Hermione pointed, and Amos Diggory, Cedric's father, went on to see if he could find anything.
"You seem to be very well informed about how that mark is formed, missy." Crouch said, his head shaking in disbelief. He started to go on but before he could, Gamp gave him a glare that seemed to stop him in his tracks.
In the ensuing silence as they waited for the witches and wizards to come back, Gamp says, "You don't have to say anything you don't want, Miss Granger. In fact, I would recommend you don't say anything at all."
He glares at Crouch then, the hate coming off it startling Harry "…After all, Crouch has a history of convicting people with little to no evidence, don't you, Barty?"
There's a story there, Harry knows. The way Mr Weasley seems to wince at the insult and the way that Crouch seems to sneer even harder, all but ensures everyone knows something is going on.
"Yes! We got them." Mr Diggory's voice cries out "There's someone here! Unconscious! It's – But – Blimey…"
"You've got someone?" Mr Crouch shouts, his voice strained and disbelieving "Who? Who is it?"
Harry hears rather than sees Mr Diggory come out, the nature around him making different noises as he walks. In his arms, Harry sees a small, limp form covered by a tea towel. Remembering it, Harry realises Mr Diggory has Winky in his hands.
Crouch seemed to go blank at the sight of his house-elf. The Ministry officials stared at Crouch, though Gamp seemed to be confused at the staring. Crouch suddenly came to life, saying jerkily "This – cannot – be. No – "
Crouch started to walk towards the clearing where Winky was found. Mr Diggory tried to tell him that there was no use, but Mr Crouch didn't seem to take him at his word. Turning to Mr Weasley, Mr Diggory said grimly "Bit embarrassing. Barty Crouch's house-elf…I mean to say – "
He is cut off by Gamp snorting. They turn to look at him and see he has a half-grin on his face, his eyes lit up "That's…well, it couldn't have happened to a better guy, eh?"
He snorted again, and then seemed to be happy listening to the other two adults converse with a slight smirk on his face. Seeing this, Mr Diggory seems to continue where he left off, "She had a wand, Arthur."
"What?" Mr Weasley asked, pure disbelief in his voice. Even Gamp seemingly goes out his happy stupor to raise an eyebrow.
"Here, Look." Mr Diggory said, bringing out a wand for the other two to inspect "Had it in her hand. So that's code three of the Code of Wand Use for a start. No non-human creature is permitted to carry or use a wand."
"She'll get convicted if it goes to trial." Gamp says grimly and with conviction.
Just then, with another pop, Ludo Bagman apparates right next to Mr Weasley, and started goggling at the dark mark. Disorientated, he almost trampled Winky in haste to turn to his colleagues. He asks them, slightly panting, "The Dark Mark? Who did it? Did you get them? Barty, what's going on?"
Mr Crouch was pale and white as he returned, his moustache twitching along with his hands. Gamp's smirk seems to grow ever larger.
"Where have you been?" Bagman asks, "Why weren't you at the match? Your elf was saving you a seat, too – Gulping Gargoyles!" Bagman had apparently seen Winky "What happened to her?"
"I've been busy, Ludo" Crouch said jerkily "And my elf has been stunned."
"Stunned? By you lot, you mean? But why -?" Bagman starts to comprehend the situation "No! Winky? Conjure the Dark Mark? She wouldn't know how! She'd need a wand for a start!"
"And she had one." Mr Diggory says, "I found her holding one, Ludo. If it's all right with you, Mr Crouch, I think we should hear what she's got to say for herself."
Mr Diggory seems to take Mr Crouch's following silence as assent and wakes up Winky. Harry watches as she wakes, and Mr Diggory informs her of what is happening. It is only when Mr Diggory waves a familiar looking wand in the air that he really pays attention though.
"Hey – that's mine!" Harry says. Everyone turns to look at him in disbelief.
"Excuse me?" Mr Diggory says incredulously.
"That's my wand!" Harry says, "I dropped it."
"You dropped it?" Mr Diggory says disbelievingly, "Is this a confession? You threw it aside after you conjured the mark?"
Before anyone can say anything, Gamp steps forward his lips pursed, and says warningly, "Diggory."
"Right…sorry." Mr Diggory mumbled, before turning to Harry expectantly.
"I realised I was missing it right after we got into the wood." Harry informs them.
That was the end apparently. Harry, Hermione, and Ron tried to stand up for Winky, but a quick priori incantato showed that they were wrong. There was no trial, however, as Mr Crouch had decided to give her clothes - the one way to free a house-elf. Hermione wasn't pleased about that and was showing it to the only two adults walking back with them; Mr Weasley and Matthew Gamp.
Only when they got back to the tent, where everyone else was, did they get any answers, however. Mr Weasley told them of the Dark Mark, and of the Death Eaters, and Harry was just happy that he hadn't met one tonight. It was just before everyone headed to bed that Gamp, who had strangely been quiet, said anything.
"Look." He said quietly "people are going to be asking questions about this so if you want a lawyer…"
He leaves it hanging there, but Mr Weasley was quick to disabuse him of the notion "Thank you, son, but I don't think we can…afford a Wizard Advocate at the moment.
He says this diplomatically, but Gamp nods his head towards Percy "It's repayment of the life debt. Free Advocate services for Weasleys for life."
That was interesting. Harry knew that only the old wizarding families done that sort of thing; it was why Ginny didn't 'owe' him one after Second year; the Weasley's didn't do life debts. The whole thing just made Harry wonder how Percy had saved Gamp's life.
Mr Weasley smiled sadly and seemed to accept it. In the silence that followed everybody looked for something to say, with Charlie coming to the rescue.
"I didn't know you were that good at transfiguration, Matthew." Charlie says curious "It was proper effective what you did back there."
"You never heard of Gamp's Laws of Elemental Transfiguration?" Gamp says with a smirk.
"He's also good at duelling, of course." One of twins says.
"Why's that, George?" Fred, presumedly, asks.
"Why! Don't you know?" George asks with a hand upon his chest in faux surprise.
"Don't I know what?" Fred asks.
"That Mr Gamp's Great Great Grandfather was a founding member of the Dark Force Defence League, of course." He says in a pompous voice as though it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"Boys." Mr Weasley's voice rings out warningly.
Gamp just rolls his eyes and turns to Harry and Hermione "I'll give you the papers tomorrow. You can either sign them or you can ask Gringotts for the name of another but either way I would advise you to get one. You're in the public eye now, after all."
He left then, and, other then when he dropped the papers off, Harry didn't see him for months afterwards.
