"...You're absolutely right, sir. I'm sorry. I promise, I'll give up on the melodrama just as soon as you help me get away from those bastards!" Diana hissed, so as not to attract the Muggles' attention -- even if Aberforth had put up privacy wards, she didn't trust them to keep Muggle eyes off her if she actually yelled the way she wanted to! How dare this sanctimonious arse who actually ESCAPED before the Death Eaters descended upon him, judge someone who had lived under their thumbs, and -- well -- other parts of their bodies? The first warning she'd even had of the new regime was when she'd been summoned to the Minister's office, and faced the Dark Lord himself, seated behind Minister Bagnold's desk!
She smiled gamely at him, all the same, because he was helping James and herself escape, and giving them new wands. She was a little nervous about letting go of her old wand -- the one that had served her faithfully for almost twelve years, now -- but she knew it was necessary, because the Ministry had the tools to track it.
"Well, of course he knows what happened to the Aurors, sweetie," she said gently, to James more than Aberforth, though she continued to stare directly at Aberforth as she spoke. "I mean, I told him; it's part of the 'melodrama' he's accused me of -- which is a fair enough point, really! I mean, he wasn't there; he doesn't know what it was like to be raped while the bodies of my colleagues fell around us, one at a time!" Again, it was a concerted effort to say what she wanted quietly, and even moreso not to cry at that particular memory!
As James made his selection out of all the wands that Aberforth had brought with him, she perked up a little bit; James had a wand now; no matter what she ended up with, James, at least, could defend himself now -- with his own wand, rather than borrowing hers. She picked up the second wand first, recognising it as aspen wood -- the same as her original wand; this wand felt rather unfriendly in her hand, however -- probably due to the core, she reasoned. She tried the first wand, which... still felt wrong, somehow. She tried the fifth wand James had chosen out of the box, and felt still strange -- perhaps because she was so used to her own wand by now! She gave the third wand a try: again a dud, really, as was the first. She tried the fifth wand again, and finally decided that this one was the most friendly feeling of the lot!
"Thank you, sir, really! Like James said, anything we can do for you, in exchange for these...! I haven't got much silver -- and no gold at all, of course, considering that I'm only paid in Sickles...!" Five per trick, she wanted to add, but reconsidered saying as much; Aberforth could only take it as even more melodrama -- which she supposed was a fair enough point; after all, she'd only be mentioning her price to try to evoke pity from him. Poor-little-hooker, barely making ends meet!
But at the mention of the Weasleys, her head jerked up again, in a start. "Bill? Isn't he one of the young'uns? I mean... what if they kept the Trace on him, to keep an eye out for the Weasleys? Is that really wise -- to give a kid a wand, I mean?"
She then grimaced uncomfortably at the reminder of the Longbottoms' ostensible fate. "Indeed... Poor souls...! But still... I don't know the Death Eaters would be parading everyone around that they caught! Only the big names, like the Longbottoms, would even be worth it! That is -- well, obviously you're not caught yet, sir, and neither is your brother! So no DUMBLEDORES to parade around! And as for Sirius -- well, I imagine the Dark Lord wouldn't want to embarrass the remaining Blacks, loyal to him -- so that could be another hushed-up death...!" Knowing in advance that such a supposition would upset her friend, she already had her arm around James's shoulders again, squeezing him gently.