This place was a lot of things for a lot of different people. Aberforth would never have a stable family situation back home and though he had been told the magic sent people home and brought people here as if on a whim, he would still take it because here he had hope.
As for Hogwarts, Hogwarts had never meant anything to him. If anything, he hated the school. He understood, of course, that it was necessary and he appreciated what it did and what it stood for. It protected students, it served as a safe harbor, and he was grateful that it existed. However, for him it was the place that separated him from his mother and sister. He was there when his mother passed and his world got a little darker. He didn't offer a remark about that, because he didn't imagine the boy would appreciate it. "Ariana." he offered in reply to the latter question, not attaching their last name. Perhaps there was more than one at the school.