By now we have three(ish) different accounts of the duel
Aberforth in Deathly Hallows
‘And there was an argument … and I pulled out my wand, and he pulled out his, and I had the Cruciatus Curse used on me by my brother’s best friend – and Albus was trying to stop him, and then all three of us were duelling, and the flashing lights and the bangs set her off, she couldn’t stand it –’
The colour was draining from Aberforth’s face as though he had suffered a mortal wound.
‘– and I think she wanted to help, but she didn’t really know what she was doing, and I don’t know which of us did it, it could have been any of us – and she was dead.’
‘And then … you know what happened. Reality returned, in the form of my rough, unlettered, and infinitely more admirable brother. I did not want to hear the truths he shouted at me. I did not want to hear that I could not set forth to seek Hallows with a fragile and unstable sister in tow.
‘The argument became a fight. Grindelwald lost control. That which I had always sensed in him, though I pretended not to, now sprang into terrible being. And Ariana … after all my mother’s care and caution … lay dead upon the floor.’
Albus in Secrets of Dumbledore
"Gellert and I made plans to go away together. My brother did not approve. One night he confronted us. Voices were raised, threats made, Aberforth drew his wand, which was foolish- I drew my wand, which was even more foolish. Gellert just laughed. No one heard Ariana coming down the stairs. Can't say for certain if it was mine- the spell. Doesn't really matter. One minute she was there and the next she was gone."
1) there was a verbal argument about their plans to leave
2) Aberforth drew out his wand first
3) They don't know which one of them did it
Albus and Aberforth in DH:
4) Grindelwald lost control
In tSoD Albus minimises Gellert's role and says that Albus drew his wand after Aberforth rather than Gellert
At this stage it's hard to say what the reason is for this difference, but I can think of a few:
1) Albus blames himself for it, so minimises Gellert's role to Newt
2) this is a retcon due to the bloodpact which would be stupid cos they could have invented another way for the pact to broken
3) The event is very traumatising for Albus and this is case of unreliable narrator
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