goals:
generate conflict between characters
add diversity to situations, interactions, setting
change things (their lives, their homes, characters themselves)
introduce new characters (especially temporary ones)
show how more established ascendent f+m couples interact
reveal information we don't know, about...
character past
initial virus infection, mechanism of virus
scene ideas...
addison action scene (fighting, or riding a motorcycle, or something dramatic)
regan / luna snuggling/tickling/playing/massage turns into (accidental?) make out session
luna trying on clothes/lingerie for ash
The antagonist could be Luna & Regan's affair. Ash is the protagonist, who beats the antagonist (Luna & Regan's affair) by overcoming the obstacle (the fact that he has no legal right to divorce Luna), by starting an affair with Addison, and entering a poly-marriage with her.
The antagonist could be monogamy. Luna/Regan are the protagonists, who beat the antagonists (Ash & Addison), by overcoming the obstacles (ash's & addison's desire to be monogamous), by tease, conspiring with Luna, seduction, convincing Luna to be protectionist, and ultimately convincing Addison/Luna to marriage-merge. Climax when there is non-monogamous sex.
The antagonist could be Ash's glass ceiling at work. Ash is the protagonist, who beats the antagonist (glass ceiling) by overcoming the obstacle (his boss's resistance) by starting an affair with her.
The antagonist could be Ash's job. Luna is the protagonist, who beats the antagonist (ash's job), by overcoming the obstacle (ash's desire to work), by making his job irrelevant (by earning much more money), inconvenient (by keeping him up all night), unpleasant (by conspiring with his boss), an obstacle (by offering him carefree days and a daytime Guardian to play with), and possibly unavailable (by getting him fired). Climax when he quits/loses his job.
The antagonist could be Ash's desire to remain equal. Luna is the protagonist, who beats the antagonist (Ash's desire for equality), by overcoming the obstacle (Ash's resistance), by demonstrating to him how much better things can be for him now that they are "unequal", (cooking for him, glimmering him, buying them a flashy car, 'lending' him to regan, conspiring with Amy/Yuma to use him at work).... Climax when they fight and Luna offers to treat him as an 'equal' again.. and he declines.
The antagonist could be the loss of Regan (to a new male love interest). Ash is the protagonist, who beats the antagonist (Regan's new love), by overcoming the obstacles (admitting he wants/loves her, getting luna to accept polygamy) by encouraging an affair between Luna/Regan, flirting, convincing Luna/Addison, and ultimately a declaration of love.
The antagonist could be losing Ash. Luna is the protagonist, who beats the antagonist (losing Ash) by overcoming the obstacle (the court taking away Ash, because she glimmer abuses him), by putting him in Addison's custody.
The antagonist could be the Luna's incarceration. Ash is the protagonist, who beats the antagonist (luna in jail) by overcoming the obstacle (convincing the other husband to drop the charges), by offering healing services to his wife and having her coerce him into dropping the charges. Climax when Luna is released from jail.
Sending Regan away to the Bachelor (threatening to break up the four of them), having her win it, then having L/A conspire to marriage-merger and have her turn down the Bachelor as the climax... with L/A/R/A intimacy as wrap-up falling action.
R/A could get a boyfriend, threatening to break up the four. We'd see different interactions of all of them, and the line drawing between them. Then just as it got more serious, and seemed like R/A might marry this guy, L/A could come to their senses and propose to them.
Regan could be assigned a new (single) man to watch over as a registered Guardian. He would be young (18/19) and in college. This would bring an influx of new characters, both the man, and a bunch of female college 'suitors'. Of course the man would be falling for Regan, and R/A see the valuable opportunity to get a husband (even if they are not in love). L/A would come to their senses and propose to R/A at the last minute.
Luna could 'start something' with Regan, which would create tension and mess-up the four all getting along. R/Addy would be upset about the breach of trust, and console each other. Luna doesn't think f/f intimacy is a breach of anything, so she refuses to stop, and Ash has no leverage over her. Addy saw it coming, and would council Ash to leave Luna. Luna would refuse to let him go, as he has no right to divorce her. Ash would feel helpless, and start an affair with Addison. Ash/Addy trust would grow, and they would fall in love, both disgusted with their partners. However, anytime she wants, Luna can intervene and 'take' her husband, and even compel him to heal Regan.
Claimists have an unusual victory, ending the law against kissing/glimmering men. This changes all the trust dynamics. Ash wants to keep working. "Company policy" and Luna's new friendship with Amy gives her false trust he'll be left alone at work. He isn't, but he likes the job benefits it gets him, so he keeps it from Luna. Even Regan glimmers him a little, now that it's legal. Luna finally finds out, and asserts her guardianship over him, making him quit his job and marriage-merger with R/A.
- Luna really misses "making out", since she can't with Ash, and when Regan flirts hard with her, she slips ... luna/ash argue, finding out there is no 'equal' (she thinks her kissing regan is fair, he doesn't. he has her hands all over regan anytime he's carried, why can't she) and Ash doesn't have any authority anyway (Luna can just dictate the rules/resolution)
- Luna lets Ash become glimmer dependent. (she's less educated about 'moderation')... creating conflict with her former Guardians as they try to tell her she's doing something wrong, and she resists it. Addison eventually gets the law to intervene, temporarily taking custody and guardianship away from Luna while they 'detox' Ash.
- Ash gets a chance to go on-tv for SportsBox, does really well, he gets good response more airtime, he's proud of his salary increase, shortly after, Luna's life/career totally eclipses his.
- Luna becomes a lawyer, makes more money, show us some domestic cases with male clients,
- society institutes a perpetual one-weekend-a-month draft, (exemption for husbands with at least 4 wives?).. we get to see a healing center. pressure on luna/ash/regan/addy about whether they want to poly and accept a 4th wife to keep Ash out of the draft.
- Claimist activism increases, they get caught in some domestic terrorism and Addy has to kick ass to get Ash out safely. Speeches by Claimists on TV. Scandals come out about abductions by registered Guardians. Popular support for Protectionism on the rise. Some male rights are taken away, as more responsibility shifts to wives/guardians. Luna/Girls worry about Ash going to work.
- Regan's (secret) application to the Bachelor is accepted. Conflict ensues over whether she should go. Regan/Addy ultimately agree she should take the chance to get them a husband. Things change as Regan (and her bubbly energy) are gone. They all watch her episodes air, and get to see a theatrically saucy side of Regan. They all talk about what it would mean if she won.. (would regan/addy drift away?) - if she wins, Ash gets a friend, and we get to see how Regan/Addy would treat their own husband (statistically unlikely for three girls to end up with two men though)... if she looses, everyone adjusts to having seen another 'side' of her on TV. / though maybe Ash/Luna can't take the thought of her marrying away, and they conspire with Addy to marriage-merger before the final episode?
- Ash runs into the 'glass ceiling' at work, though his boss Yuma carefully implies she can help him out if he will heal her. Ash refuses, which doesn't go over well. she flaunts how much control she has over his career. Then she shows him, gutting his assignments. Making him do fake assignments and continuing to sexually harass him. He brings it up with Luna/Regan (since they work in law), and they are sympathetic, but don't see much he can legally do about it. Especially if she doesn't fire him.
- The four meet somewhere crowded one afternoon, amusement park, festival, etc. (Addy had to meet from work) Ash, he goes missing. Luna/Regan are in devastated shock. Addy immediately kicks into gear, using Luna's tracker to follow him across the beach, seeing him carried into a van, running for her police motorcycle to make chase (but wearing her street clothes). luna/regan comforting each other. addy calling his tracker number directly into the station, making chase for the car..some kind of dramatic recovery by addy. the four of them reuniting. ultimately shows four of them that they are much closer than they realized.
alternate / intersecting stories
woman who treats her man more like a pet (sort of happens in "park picnic")
very wealthy/famous woman, who is used to getting what she wants (like the famous athlete)
a man who is less educated, more dependent
18yo "bachelor camp" experience
Ash's male classmates, and what their lives are like now
lavish party with drinking, men, glimmer sticks (wealthy/famous person invite?)
maybe the famous athlete invites them to a party, and before Addy realizes what kind of party it is, Luna and Ash have wandered off?
18/teen boys experimenting with girls / glimmer sticks
most boys are skittish, from the warnings.. while the girls are suggestive/aggressive/seductive
I think I'm going to write this as a totally separate story set in the same universe... maybe as backstory for Regan when she was 17, and experimenting with boys/girls. It might include her first meeting Luna.
The first set of dynamics would be around how the girls attracted the boys to begin with. In a school of 300, there would only be 3-4 boys, so girls in small and big groups, and as individuals, would do outlandish things to get the boy's attention -- to try to get private time with them. This could include sexy outfits (sometimes coordinates), flirting, performance, even a school-sponsored contest.
When the teen girls did get some private time....the girls would be anxious to experiment with the glimmer, while the boys would be *very* reluctant to move too fast. They might use glimmer sticks, so the boys feel less intimidated. Some girls would like having the boys just horney, mutually enjoying touching eachother. Other girls would try to goad them into kissing, just to revel in the boys being fully-juiced into instant-climax and unconciousness.
That said, there would be no 'healing' until men are age 18. One of the "changes" I made from the original story is about coming-of-age. In my world, at age-18, men are injected with the live ascendant virus by the state. The original story had some kind of "compatibility", where men and women have to be less than three years apart in age for the healing to work, but I didn't like it, so I'm ditching that.
At some level, both of these choices are trying to avoid the world degenerating into healing/sex at younger and younger ages (why not have 14 year old boys healing in centers?). I just don't like the nearby age compatibility thing. It's too scientifically weird.