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Jioni took her time in heading back to the designated spot. She didn't want to arrive too early, nor too late. Being perfectly on time was difficult but she managed to do it. What else was a Lady to do but to try to be as perfect as possible? She wasn't supposed to have flaws or shortcomings due to her rank, but coming off as such was hard. Yet here she was, arriving just at the right time, her tail carried low and easy behind her.

"Good evening, Zah," she said as she got within earshot. She had no intention of staying here to talk to him, but for now it would be good to make their pleasantries and small talk before slipping off into the woods. "I do hope there wasn't anything too eventful on your patrols."

A simple enough question, of course, but the answer would provide Jioni with what she needed to know. Were others out and about in strange places? Many lions gathering in one place? Or was all normal, everything peaceful and grand as the moon? She needed to be sure tonight wasn't going to be a bad one to try to sway Zah to the side of the old royals.

Jioni kept a straight face as Zah reported back, glad that nothing seemed out of the ordinary. She nodded slightly to show she had heard before flicking an ear at a sound off in the distance. Just some cubs playing from the sound of it. Good.

"It has been decent so far," she said, shifting to head off from their meeting spot. "Walk with me, Zah. There are things I'd like to talk about that are better said in the shelter of the forest." He seemed to be taking to the pride well and she was glad for that, but she really needed to get to him about the rebellion before someone on the king's side managed to plant the seed of squishing the resistance.

"I trust you've found yourself quite at home here now that you've been with us for a while," she said once they left the meeting spot. Best to make small talk until she was sure they were alone.

Jioni gave a very quiet 'mm' by way of answer, but didn't say anything else until they were a good distance from the open lands. She paused for a few moments in silence, her ears swiveling this way and that to make sure they were truly alone.

"You are new," she said as she turned to face the dark male. "And you don't know of things that happened before your arrival. I intend to fill you in on those things in an attempt to strengthen our numbers." She was quiet for a moment before sitting down.

"Shangyue rules this pride, but he didn't gain the title with honor," she said quietly. "He murdered his own family to assure himself a seat on the throne and it is well known through the pride. There are those that oppose his rule and those that welcome it with open paws, but for now the pride is in a sort of stalemate. Shangyue is obviously ruling with minimal interference."

Here Jioni paused, waiting to see how Zah reacted to the news. She had been speaking in a fairly neutral tone, although some of her wording suggested she was on the side of those that opposed the king's actions. Should he react in favor of the king she'd stop there, but if he showed disgust or anger or any other emotion that wasn't delight, she knew she'd be able to continue.

Zah's reaction was what Jioni had hoped for. She could see the surprise on his face even though he did a good job hiding it. If she hadn't been looking for it she wouldn't have spotted it, however fleeting.

"He has supporters within the pride, some that are of very high rank," she murmured softly. "I feel as though the general population doesn't approve of the means he used to take the throne, but everyone here is very in tune with the rank system. Most wouldn't dare to challenge someone a rank above them, let alone the king. And he did have a right to the throne...he just didn't want to wait for his grandparents and parents to pass on. So that, combined with the high-ranking support, has kept most of the pride members quiet. There are those that are more outspoken, but they are looked upon with distrust and even a bit of fear by others that don't want to make waves."

She paused here, lifting her head a bit to look Zah in the eye. "I am not overly fond of Shangyue, in personality and in how he took the throne. I try to keep that quiet, though, so I may be of possible help to the resistance. There is a need to have higher ranking lions that can eavesdrop. What I lack is strength." Jioni hadn't been raised to fight, although she could scrap with the best of them. Someone big and strong whose job it was to protect the pride was a valuable asset to have.

"I was hoping you'd be willing to join the resistance and, when the time comes, help us in usurping Shangyue and restoring the rightful heir to the throne."

Zah's reply made Jioni pause for a moment. Would they wonder? Possibly. She rolled her shoulders a bit, thinking of a way to excuse their meetings. There were lots of other ladies and lords that had nothing better to do than butt their noses into other lions' business, so a cover story would be good.

"We could tell them we're courting," she said with a shrug. "It's not uncommon for lower-ranking males to court higher ranking females. If they are mated, the male takes the female's rank. It's a quick way to climb the social ladder within the pride."

And, if she was being completely honest with herself, she wouldn't mind others thinking they were courting. Zah was a strong lion, that was always a good quality to have in a mate. She glanced around before motioning for Zah to follow her a little deeper into the forest. They had more to talk about now that he had agreed that he wanted to help. It was time to catch him up on the history of the pride.