Elizabeth is the first one to say the rockpile is unsafe.
Time's fool is referring to any concept that becomes lost in time. Love is an intangible and uncontrollable feeling, yet is felt instantly and does not waste time to be present.
In a neat literary twist, Elizabeth's positive qualities are also her negative ones. She is a virtuous woman who is steadfast and true—but these traits also make her a bit of a cold fish. When we first meet her, she's especially cold...and thinks she smells something fishy.<span> She's got good reason to be suspicious and kind of distant, though: her husband has recently had an affair with their housekeeper, Abigail Williams.</span>