Warning: contains spoilers for Nightwing #79!
Dick Grayson, aka Nightwing, is often considered to be the heart of the DC Universe, and he credits Batman and Alfred Pennyworth for raising him together. Longtime readers have watched him change over the years (and decades) from an orphaned circus performer, to the first Robin and Batman's first sidekick, to an adult in charge of his own destiny - who still chooses to fight crime and protect the innocent, albeit in his own style and with his own name. And as Nightwing admits to himself in Nightwing #79, written by Tom Taylor with art by Bruno Redondo and colors by Adriano Lucas, he attributes his growth to the people who caught him whenever he fell.
Before becoming Nightwing, Dick Grayson was a trained acrobat and trapeze artist who performed alongside his mother and father, Mary and John Grayson. Known as the Flying Graysons, they performed in Haly's traveling circus until the owner refused to pay protection money to the mob. Mobster Tony Zucco subsequently sabotaged the trapeze safety equipment, killing John and Mary. Batman took Grayson under his proverbial wing, and saw in him a potential ally. Thus, Robin was born - but Bruce Wayne, with his many demons, could never be a perfect father figure. Fortunately, there is another man Nightwing considers his father: Bruce Wayne's longtime butler Alfred Pennyworth.
At the beginning of the issue, Nightwing is spending an evening with Barbara Gordon on the streets of Bludhaven - a city as rife with crime and corruption as Gotham. Being with Barbara makes Dick realize he feels safe with her, and reminisces about his childhood, when he relied on others to help him through dark times. "I've spent my life working without a safety net," he thinks to himself "...because I've always had someone to catch me if I fell. My parents. My father. My other father." At this point, Alfred is seen comforting Grayson after Batman "fired" him from the role of Robin. This is in reference to the events of Batman #408, in which the Joker shoots Robin in the shoulder. Batman, fearing for Grayson's safety, forced him to hang up the Robin costume for good.
It's worth noting that the age at which Batman meets Robin has changed over time. Initially, Dick Grayson was a mere 10 years old when he began fighting as Robin, as depicted in Detective Comics #38, released in 1940. Modern-day continuity states that Grayson was a teenager upon first meeting Bruce Wayne. For his part, Wayne was canonically 25, and this age gap (or lack thereof) would significantly impact the father-son dynamic. Modern-day Batman is more frequently portrayed with significant and unresolved trauma concerning the death of his parents, so it would naturally fall to Alfred to be the more stable father figure of the two, even if he is technically Bruce Wayne's employee, and a father figure to Batman himself.
Alfred has been Batman's most trusted companion since the beginning, but it's fascinating to consider that he was also Bruce's co-parent in caring for Dick. While older stories might have considered Alfred a lesser presence in the Bat-Family, Nightwing makes it clear that his parental influence was equal to Batman's. It is quite telling that while he refers to John and Mary as his "parents," he still designates Bruce and Alfred as his "father(s)". Ever the constant at Wayne Manor (even death can't keep him away), the indelible mark left by Alfred on both Batman and Nightwing can't be understated, and won't soon be forgotten.