Aberforth was trying to understand. Really, he was. The fact that he could not follow what she was trying to convey did not lie with his intelligence, but more with his lack of experience. Aberforth had long been well acquainted with the sucking black pit in the corner of his mind, the one that threatened to swallow him whole at least a couple of times a week. It was like trying to swim to the surface of an impossibly deep lake with an anvil tied around your ankles. Impossible, but the desperate need for air drove you to flail and kick and fight with everything in you even though you knew it was an impossible task. Even when you were drowning, you kept swimming, because there was nothing else to do. Because you remembered air and how it felt without the aching pressure of all the water bearing down on you, flooding inside of you.
The thought had Aberforth resisting a shiver though it still raced down his spine. Moving over to the book she had gestured to, his eyes drank in the potion ingredients. Were any of them truly toxic? Turning his gaze to her once more, he felt the weight of her words in the clenching of his heart. Oh, but he knew how that felt. Aberforth was a prisoner to his own mind. Not in the way that his beloved sister was, but prisoner all the same. Riddled with horrific memories and deep seated insecurities, Aberforth often fell victim to his past. To the feelings he tried so hard to keep locked away. His past was Pandora's Box, one mention of anything that had happened to him and it was like flinging the lid open on all his demons.
"Ariana." Aberforth finally spoke, drawing her to his side with an arm around her shoulders. Pressing a kiss to her temple, he let his eyes slip shut, breathing in the familiar scent of her as he tried to collect his thoughts. This was ... delicate. Very delicate. Aberforth knew how precious Ariana's clarity was. To have been able to experience it must have been wonderful and he was grateful that she had, but his dislike for Albus Potter only grew stronger since this was the result of his funny little prank. Stupid, ignorant boy.
"I know." he murmured against her hair, "I know how precious and dear this is to you, but you have been doing so well without the help of potions. You've been growing, healing, all on your own. Perhaps those forced feelings put upon you by that potion did feel lovely, but they weren't really real. I wish there was a potion, love. I wish there was. One that could take all this weight from your shoulders, but ... there isn't. Even if that potion helped, it would wear off and you would be subject to its whims." Pausing here, Aberforth pulled back to get a proper look at her. "You've been healing all on your own, long before a potion involved itself. I know it seems like it will take too long, but it will be worth it. You're strong enough without such things, Ariana. You're the strongest, most brilliant person I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. I know it hurts right now. When you hurt, I hurt, but I'm not going anywhere and you're not going anywhere. We can work on this, together. Like we always do. You don't need this. You have me."