Shrike has a difficult time accepting gifts or favors he feels he didn't earn, as Dimitri might be noticing. He probably still feels vaguely indebted from before, too, though without any means to pay it back, there's not much point bringing it up. This may or may not get him into trouble at some point if his perceived sense of indebtedness keeps accumulating.

But that's a topic for another time, if ever. For now, he's being asked a very different kind of question, and one he certainly doesn't mind answering.

"Oh, I'm helping fixing things. Sometimes building things. I don't know how to use the tools. but I can carry stuff and hold it where it's supposed to go. Or take it out." In other words, he found a handyman in need of an assistant. Work that generally doesn't require interacting with a lot of people, and those he does thankfully don't insist he remove his hood.