there's something so interesting about the fact that tabitha's nickname "tabby" was used by 2 people: her father and stella.
her father, she doesn't have a relationship with aside from years of resentment, anger, confusion, and sadness. when you confront tabitha about the hidden birthday cards, and say that maybe we can visit him after the funeral, she is moved to tears. she even remarks how much it hurt seeing other people's parents when one of hers is gone. clearly, it's still a sensitive topic for her. one of those feelings you leave in the attic to collect dust, but you remember it's there, and it hurts all over again.
and stella, we all know the craziness of that relationship/situationship? something notable is that it ends similarly to tabitha's relationship with her father, with them being pulled apart by pearlanne. with no choice or say from tabitha herself, over time she's just taught herself to accept it.
these two people share a deep, genuine care for tabitha, simply for being a human being. (since we barely know anything else about father dearest aside from him dipping yet still wanting to stay in contact this could be wrong lmao but i digress)
not for what she can offer, not for her status. they see her as more than her scarlet heritage. they see her for the person she is deep, down inside. a version of herself that tabitha probably doesn't see either, blinded by the veil of her last name, but they do. and they love it. their tabby.