Rosalie's greatest burden was that being a lesser noble woman barred her from conquest. Her grandfather had gained status by taking land, under the king's order, from the Kingdom of Hooks. Her cousin Rick had participated in the surveys of the Great Beneath and secured royal favor as well as his position as their grandfather's heir. Rosalie lacked this opportunity. A greater noble woman could raise an army to fight on her behalf. Rosalie's family could only afford a respectable dowry which she never used on account of resenting that her husband should conquer her. Her grandfather, indulgent of her because he saw himself in her, allowed this.

Because she was so well loved by her family, Rosalie sought to be a good daughter. She oversaw the preservation of foods and assessed the value of wool from the flocks. She even had a very handsome pet project, a small flock of checkered rabbits. She had been breeding the beasts since she ought to have been of marrying age and now they were lovely creatures, marked with orange and brown, black, or gray. These things and the steady companionship of her dearest friend and cousin Suzanne were enough, Rosalie told herself.

She did relish a hunt when she could join one, though. She only wished she could take more than a fox's sour coat.