Alfred's doing a pretty solid job of holding you steady in midair without a wall to slam you into. He's probably going to want to straighten out his wrists, though; letting them bend under your weight like that is just asking for a sprain.
"Well?"
Oh, right, the furious interrogation.
"...proactively protected my flock?" you reply.
"What?"
"Well, we're kinda under siege at the moment, so I figured I'd step out and do some cleanup. But enough about me, how've ye been? Feel like it's been ages. Any luck with those vampires?"
"How have I been?" he snaps, seemingly back in the groove. "I was at my post, making sure you hadn't stirred up some unholy mess in Old Yharnam, when I heard a bloody war break out near the Grand Cathedral. I figured the Church Hunters were dealing with some aggressive beasts, but when my curiosity got the better of me, I decided to go and take a look." He pulls your face towards his, although the act would probably be more intimidating if he weren't several inches shorter than you. "You turned the plaza into a slaughtering ground. You butchered dozens."
"Oh, is that what ye're mad about? I assure ye, this is all a big misunderstandin'."
"So who killed them?"
"Me and two friends, but we had a good reason."
He trembles for a moment before dropping you back to your feet, taking a few steps away, and gulping down some deep breaths.
"Do you enjoy making me angry?"
"Not you specifically, no."
His anger seems to reach the plateau of harmonic fury. With slow, deliberate movements, he pulls his hammer free and cocks it over his shoulder. His placid face twitches ever-so-slightly in unstable equilibrium.
"Alexander Anderson," he breathes, "in the very short time since I last saw you, you have torn apart the Healing Church's most sacred grounds, killed an untold number of its members, and provoked guerrilla warfare with a third party. You will explain what happened and why, in exact detail, or so help me I will mash you into the ground until you stop getting up."
"Fine, but can I do it closer ta the chapel? Got some witnesses and evidence there, plus a bit o' grub if ye're hungry."
"No."
"Alright, alright. So it turns out the Healin' Church was an evil cult and the blood they used belonged ta, bear with me, creatures from beyond the stars."
Your audience hesitates. "'Beyond the stars?' Is that a metaphor?"
"You'd think, but no. See, they're called 'Great Ones' and I don't recall invitin' yer bitch arse inta this conversation."
The glowing red hunchback appears totally unrepentant for his grievous breach of social etiquette as he bears down on you, brick held high. Glitzy as he is, there's only so many times huge people can charge straight at you before the trick stops working. You put a bayonet through his head as Alfred pulverizes a pitchfork wielder, also glowing, who seemed to understand the concept of flanking but stumbled a bit in execution.
More of the technicolor armada round nearby corners. You and Alfred, working in unconscious tandem, go back-to-back and lay into them with club, hammer, bayonets, and some headbutts for the rowdier ones.
"Ain't this great?" you say as you punt a dog into nearby masonry. "Fightin' the heathen hordes together, bondin' like warriors."
"We are not bonding."
"I toldja this'd be a beautiful friendship."
"Please shut up."
You notice that the battered bodies vanish rather than stay behind, much like those you encountered in the Nightmare. You make a mental note to grab one of the bells the ladies dropped and investigate the potential for infinite punching bags.
When it seems clear that no second wave is forthcoming, Alfred hurriedly attempts to re-establish distance from you.
"How many of them are there?" he says. "I saw dozens attack the chapel before you got thrown off the roof."
"Apparently as many as they want," you reply. "And how did ye know that was me?"
He just looks at you.
"Okay, dumb question. Now can we head back ta the chapel? I'm all for kickin' a theoretically unlimited amount of arse but I've got some business ta take care of."
"Alright," he says with a frown. "I suppose if you intended to kill me you would have done so during the fight."
"See, that's the kind of trust only true friendship can foster."
"I will beat you."
After a brief detour to pocket one of the bells those clumsy ladies dropped, you lead the way back towards home base, mentally comparing your current location to the overhead view you got during your outbound flight. You make good headway before running into your fine feathered friend not far from the entrance.
"What the hell were you thinking, Anderson?" says Eileen while the Churchman beside her trades glares with Alfred.
"That it would be awesome ta swoop down upon the heathens like a thunderbolt from the heavens."
"And was it worth hitting the ground so hard we could hear your bones break from inside the chapel?"
"Completely."
You hear the faintest hints of a sigh through her mask.
A third Churchman, presumably another member of the Anderson Retrieval Party, trots into view. Eileen nods towards Alfred.
"Who's your friend?"
"Alfred, the Executioner," you reply as he twitches despondently in the background.
"Hm, I thought they had disbanded. In any case, come inside and we'll figure out where to go from here. Steffon filled me in on some of your adventures."
She spins smartly on her heel and the Churchmen move to either side of her. You follow their march and look over your shoulder to see Alfred trudging along with an air of resigned acceptance.
[] Fill Alfred in
[] Have one of the others fill Alfred in
-[] Introduce Alfred to Ebrietas
[] Brainstorm with Eileen
[] Head back to the Nightmare with Steffon and Simon
[] Write in...