[Van Zieks moves his free hand over his mouth and chin in deliberate consideration. This much is still integral to his personality, even if his expression is much softer as he does it.]

Miss... Black R-Raisin Cookie.

[He's staring at a bunch of black birds. He almost said raven.]

Pray forgive the discourtesy of my assumption... but if you must truly offer some boon in return to reassure yourself, would such teaching not allow you to acquire some of the skills you claim to lack?

[If she could learn to change her form or size, she could easily find other ways to contribute, including strengthening her battle skills. It still rubs him the wrong way, though, to think of tutoring her only because he might gain something for it...]

Even putting aside the matter of direct repayment, Reverein is a small place, with few residents; any sharing of knowledge or expertise will only serve to strengthen our settlement as a whole; whoever may benefit from your future improvements will benefit others in turn. And, genuinely... I find great gratification in seeing the improvement of our community.

[He argues for a living. Surely he can argue this woman into accepting a favor.]