Chapter Text
"Hey, Straw Hat! I'm Rage D. Veshti, an artificial devil fruit user. Take me with you! I can't go with the marines!" Zoro heard a girl's voice and went to the railing to see what was going on.
The girl standing by The Sunny was nearly emaciated. Her skin was ashen, dark hair hung limply, framing her bony face. The clothes she was wearing resembled those of the children they rescued, but were dirty and torn.
Zoro glanced towards his captain.
Luffy was staring, his face blank. It was an odd look for him.
"What do you mean artificial devil fruit? What can you do?" Nami asked, standing beside Luffy. She was eyeing the girl carefully, as if Luffy's silence set off her internal alarm bells.
"It's a rip off of Emporio Ivankov's Horm Horm no mi, but the power is botched. Cesar forced me to eat it and experimented on me for…I don't even know how long. What's the date?"
"January 11,1524," the navigator answered with a frown.
"Yeah, it's been over a year," the girl didn't look tearful or sad, just displeased. "Listen, could you give me a ride to an island with a big city? I think Dressrosa is nearby. I'll manage on my own from there."
Luffy remained silent, continuing to stare at her intently.
"What are you waiting for?!" Sanji yelled. "She looks hungry and cold. We can't leave a lady in need."
"What can you do with the devil fruit?" Luffy finally asked, his eyes still fixed on the girl.
"I can manipulate people's hormones to some extent. But the more I use this power, the more it strains my body, which is why I look like this. Cesar didn't go easy on me," she brushed her hair back, causing her shirt to ride up and reveal a piece of rope tied around her hips to prevent her pants from sliding down.
The cook scowled at the sight and reached for a smoke. "Luffy, I swear to gods, if you'll leave a hungry girl here I will trash your ass," Sanji growled through his teeth while lighting the cigarette.
"There's something strange about her," Luffy replied, his gaze fixed on the girl. "You can come, but on one condition." he pointed a finger at her. "You won't use your power on my crew without permission."
"Sure. Thanks, Straw Hat!" The girl visibly relaxed.
Zoro watched her as she slowly made her way onto the ship, her movement appearing stiff and forced. Immediately upon stepping foot on the deck, Chopper guided her to the nearest bench. He asked questions, checked her vitals, freaked out, and quickly arranged an IV bag with fluids, an extra blanket, and a warm coat for her. Meanwhile, the cook approached with a bowl filled with steaming soup, which she devoured in a single gulp.
Chopper nearly lost his mind, scolding both her and Sanji.
Then, Trafalgar Law brought Cesar Clown on board and the ship set sail.
Everyone started bickering, discussing alliances, making plans for overthrowing Emperors of the Sea and taking on Donquixote Doflamingo. Meanwhile, Cesar Clown made threats only to be put down by the cook. Law explained SAD, SMILE and artificial devil fruits, the stuff Doflamingo made for Kaido the Beast.
"You mean, like the one she ate?" Luffy pointed at the girl with the IV, directing everyone’s attention to her.
She waved a bony hand at them and smiled. "Hi, I'm Rage D. Veshti. Nice to meet you all."
Cesar let out a strangled cry, his eyes bulging in shock. "What are you doing here, Rage? You were supposed to be dead!"
That earned him another kick from the cook.
Law asked about her powers, and she repeated the same answer she had given Luffy earlier.
"Artificial devil fruits are all zoan types, but you have paramecia abilities," Law stated flatly with a blank expression.
"Really?" The girl seemed surprised. She turned to Cesar with a furrowed brow. "Explain that, Goat."
"I don't need to explain anything to you!" Cesar yelled. "You are a complete failure! Your pathetic abilities are nowhere near Ivankov’s level, and your body deteriorates after every use of the devil fruit! You’re worthless!"
The girl's face twisted in anger, and fury burned in her eyes. She turned to Luffy.
"He's not your crewmate. So, is it okay if I use him to show you what I can do?"
Cesar began to cackle at her words, and Luffy nodded. "Just don't kill him. We need him to take down Mingo."
She took out the IV needle from her hand and walked shakily towards Cesar, who laughed even more and continued to belittle her, calling her a failed experiment. It got on Zoro’s nerves, and he was ready to pummel the clown himself, but Cesar fell silent when the girl placed her hands on his face.
"I will kill you the moment they let you go," she promised darkly.
"Big talk for a dying experime—" Cesar's eyes rolled back, and his limp body hit the deck.
Chopper screamed and rushed to the unconscious scientist, checking for a pulse. "I just treated him! What did you do?!"
The girl took a deep breath, straightened up, cracked her neck and rolled her shoulders, no longer giving the impression that she would collapse any second.
"I took some of his hormones to speed up the regeneration process in my body. He'll be fine; it's just the initial shock," she calmly explained. "Look, he's waking up now."
Cesar stirred and groaned, and when he fully regained consciousness, he burst into tears.
"What did you do to me?" he sobbed, his whole body trembling.
"That's how it feels when your testosterone and neurotransmitters are low. Emotions all over the place. Maybe you'll finally feel some well-deserved guilt, you psychopath," she spat angrily, getting in the clown’s face.
"You liar! You couldn't selectively extract hormones! Your own hormones were always unbalanced, and you couldn't achieve anything noteworthy with the devil fruit power!" Cesar screamed, pointing an accusing finger at her.
"As if I would show you anything, so you could create more of these fake fruits!" she shouted equally loudly, raising her fist to strike the clown.
Cesar's jaw dropped, and Luffy burst into laughter.
"Weren't you afraid he would kill you for lack of progress?" Law asked, distracting her from the scientist.
The girl looked cautious as she glanced at Law. She hesitated for a moment before responding. "Powers like mine should never be made available to certain kinds of people. There are too many who want to control others just for the sake of power," she stated firmly. "Besides, Monet once told me that they wouldn't kill me, just ship me to Dressrosa," she explained as she returned to her spot and covered herself with blankets. Chopper came to her side, attaching a new needle to her hand and starting another IV.
"Trusting Monet's words wasn't the best choice," Law commented flatly.
"Yeah. Hey Goat, where did you get the fruit from?" the girl asked Cesar.
The mad scientist looked up at her with teary eyes and an angry expression on his face, but remained silent.
"Come on, spill and I might fix your mood swings,” she tried to persuade him.
Cesar's expression wavered. "It was Vegapunk's failed experiment," he explained through gritted teeth. "Why aren't you dead? Monet was supposed to finish you off."
"Guess she changed her mind," she replied with a shrug, then leaned her head on the mast and closed her eyes.
"Hey! You said you'd fix me!" Cesar demanded loudly.
Before she could reply, Law's transponder snail began to ring, capturing everyone's attention.
It was Doflamingo.
The atmosphere on the ship grew tense as threats and demands were exchanged. Cesar screamed for help. Luffy shouted nonsense, and Doflamingo tried to bribe him.
Eventually, an arrangement was made. In exchange for Cesar, Doflamingo had to give up his Shichibukai title. His answer had to be announced in the morning paper or no deal.
Shortly after the call, as Law continued with further explanations, Luffy cut him off and decreed it was time to eat. The entire crew got up and headed to the galley, seemingly unfazed by the fact that they had just confronted one of the Warlords of the Sea.
"Rage-chan!" Sanji called out from the galley's door. "What would you like to eat? I'll make you something special!"
"Shut up, cook" Zoro answered him gruffly. "She's asleep."
A jolt of consciousness pulled her from sleep, as she sluggishly registered the sensation of being touched. It was unusual for someone to come into her cell while she was asleep. She decided to stay still, to assess the situation.
She listened, but the sounds were wrong. She heard the distant murmur of voices, the rhythmic crashing of waves, and the gentle rustling of a flag. The smells were wrong too. The air carried a clean and briny scent unlike the usual poisonous air of Punk Hazard.
Her heart thudded in her chest as her mind reeled in panic. Opening her eyes, she found herself in an unfamiliar setting, devoid of the cold walls, steel door, and barred window. Beside her was a creature with antlers fiddling with a tube connected to her hand.
She snapped the hand back and tried to scramble away, but her limbs got tangled up in something, restricting her movements.
She was trapped.
Her vision narrowed, her blood pumped loudly in her ears as she kicked furiously at the bindings on her legs. Her breathing became rapid and shallow, as her throat constricted.
The animal spoke in a high-pitched voice, its hooves shaking frantically. The words were hard to focus on, and her vision blurred. Then a second voice joined in, calm but demanding. Her head snapped in the direction where the voice was coming from.
Gold . That was her only thought when her gaze found the source of the voice, and she was pinned with an intense stare.
"Breathe," the voice demanded, and she forced a rapid inhale and exhale. "Slower. Breathe in," the voice ordered, as golden eyes stared at her. "And slowly breathe out."
She followed the instructions, taking several deep breaths as the voice guided her through each one.
Golden eyes. Awareness slowly returned to her with every calming breath. Black hair. White hat. Black shirt. She recited in her mind, identifying the colors she spotted. She rolled on her back and looked up. Blue sky, white clouds, black flag.
With each color recognized, the panic receded, and her thoughts cleared. She found herself lying on a wooden deck, her legs tangled in a blanket, and a too-warm coat was wrapped around her, making her sweaty.
Finally, memories flooded back. She was on The Straw Hat's ship, sailing towards Dressrosa. Glancing around, she spotted Chopper standing nearby, looking worried and flustered. Trafalgar Law was crouching beside her, staring at her impassively.
"Fuck," she uttered before covering her face with her hands. She had just had a panic attack in front of a Warlord and possibly half of the Straw Hat crew.
"Rage," she heard the small doctor's voice. "Are you okay?"
Not really.
"Yeah, just give me a minute." Her heartbeat was slowing down, but her muscles ached from exertion, and her skin was clammy and too hot.
From her left, a cackle exploded. "What is it, Rage? Finally losing your composure?" Cesar's voice taunted.
The laughter ceased with a loud thump.
The laughter abruptly stopped with a thump. "Shut up or the next one will dislocate your jaw," a low, menacing voice threatened.
Rage peered between her fingers and saw the cook standing over Cesar, glaring furiously. If it was up to her, she wouldn't be so gentle with the psychopath.
A faint smell of blood reached her nose, and she realized it was coming from her. She removed her hands from her face to inspect the back of her right hand. There was a small tear in the skin where the IV needle had been inserted, and it was bleeding profusely.
She woke up when Chopper was changing the IV bag, and she ripped the needle out in her panic. Fuck.
Ignoring the people around her, she untangled herself from the blanket, then stood up and peeled off the thick coat she was given earlier. A cool breeze swept over her overheated skin, making her sigh in relief. However, her prison clothes were drenched in sweat and stuck uncomfortably to her skin.
"Would you come with me to the infirmary, so I can take care of your hand?" Chopper asked in a quiet voice.
She nodded and followed the small doctor, keeping her eyes focused on his back to avoid glancing around. She didn't want to see the looks on other people's faces after they witnessed her freak out. She didn't need that right now.
"I have finished your bloodwork," Chopper said after they stepped into the small infirmary.
The cramped space made her uncomfortable, but she did her best to shove the feeling down. Unfortunately, the antiseptic smell only made it harder to bear.
Chopper pointed her to a small cot. She took a seat on the edge, gripping the frame and focusing on her breath.
The doctor went into explaining the test results. Low sugar levels, iron deficiency, calcium deficiency, increased ketone levels, hormonal imbalance and so on and on, all pointing to severe malnutrition, bordering on organ failure. The Straw Hat's doctor recommended several IV drips with necessary nutrients.
"It would be helpful if you could control the level of your parathyroid hormones. They regulate calcium levels and can cause calcium withdrawal from bones, making them weak. The calcium drip should help, but just make sure your devil fruit won't disrupt the process. You look a lot better than a few hours ago, by the way," the small doctor observed, his big eyes full of kindness.
"Yeah, that's the devil fruit power," she replied while an IV bag slowly dripped its contents into her veins. "I can boost my healing. It's how I managed to stay alive on Punk Hazard. Repeatedly repairing the damage Cesar made to my organs with his experiments. But I feel weak after using my powers, and it takes some time to get my strength back."
"Does it help when you absorb hormones from someone else, like you did with Cesar earlier?" Chopper asked with a kind expression on his face.
"Yeah."
"Does it make a difference which hormones you're absorbing?"
"Not really," she scratched at the patch the IV's needle was secured with. "If I absorb two or three different types at a time, I can recombine them."
Chopper nodded thoughtfully at the information. "I have a few types of synthetic hormones. If you'd like, I can put some in the IV, and you could regenerate more damage without being dependent on other people."
The offer made her feel uneasy, but she pushed the feeling down. "Yeah, let's do that."
Chopper rummaged through cabinets and pulled out vials and syringes.
"I'll give you a small dose of adrenaline and insulin. We'll see how you'll react," he injected the contents of two syringes into the IV.
Rage stared as the fluid went down the drip at a steady pace. After a while, her arm started burning, and nausea hit her, the sensations all too familiar.
She ripped the patch off and tore the needle out. Again, blood trickled down her hand and fell to the floor.
"I think Cesar already tried this," she spoke in a weak voice when Chopper fussed over her. "It was painful and made me sick."
"Ok, so no synthetic hormones," Chopper looked worried. "Maybe phytohormones or animal-"
"Thank you, doctor," she interrupted. "I know you want to help me, I just can't do more testing right now."
He looked guilty and flustered. "I'm sorry, I'll be more considerate," he told her, while taping a piece of gauze to her bleeding hand.
"Thanks, you're a good person," she praised and smiled when he flushed profusely. "Could you tell me where the toilet is? My bladder is full after the IV's."
"Of course! Come with me, I'll show you!" he hopped on his hooves towards the door. "Sanji will make food high in fat and protein for you. You should avoid carbs until your metabolism stabilizes. Also, Nami left some clothes for you in the bathroom."
"Thank you," Rage replied, surprised at the level of consideration The Straw Hats were showing her.
She made quick use of the toilet, eager to take off her filthy clothes. She jumped into the shower to wash away all the grime from her skin.
She scrubbed herself raw from all the dirt, sweat, and residual toxins from Punk Hazard. She washed her hair with a nice shampoo she found on the shelves.
The bathroom contained a surprising abundance of care products, more than she would have expected for a pirate crew. The shelves and cabinets were packed with a wide variety of shampoos, soaps, shaving creams, face masks, skin oils, and balms. It was really impressive. It reminded her of home, where all the bathrooms and showers were stocked with various products for different kinds of hair and skin types.
She quickly dried herself with a fluffy towel, then inspected the clothes left for her. There was a white, button-down shirt made with very soft fabric, a pair of shorts, and a sash. Three pairs of shoes in different sizes stood by the door.
She pulled on the shirt and then the shorts, using the sash to keep them in place. After picking the best fitting shoes, she shoved her prison clothes into a trash bin.
When she emerged from the bathroom, the cook was calling everyone for dinner. There was a loud springing noise when Straw Hat shot himself from the front of the ship toward the galley's door. He nearly flew inside, but the cook took him down mid-flight with a swift kick.
"Don't trash my galley, you bastard," scolded the blond cook.
The scene filled her with amusement. It was a good sign that the crew wasn't afraid of their captain and didn't put up with his shit. It felt nostalgic.
The galley was warm and bright, filled with an enticing aroma of cooked food. The long table was packed with all sorts of dishes. Rage grabbed the nearest seat, beside a dark-haired woman she recognised from wanted posters as Nico Robin and the tall skeleton, Brook.
He wasn't actually eating, but he offered to pour her some tea and made small talk. His comment about not having a stomach because he's dead made her chuckle.
"Can I see your panties?" he unexpectedly asked and Rage nearly spit out her tea.
She glanced around the table. The orange-haired navigator looked furious and was reaching for a knife, but the others didn't seem concerned.
Rage knew it would have been wise to just ignore the question. She barely knew these people, and they were helping her. But it was against her nature to stay silent in a situation like that.
"Lingerie fetish, huh?" Rage turned to the skeleton, taking his bony hand into hers. "It's quite common among older men, often those who have performance issues," she patted his hand and let go. "We don't know each other well enough for me to show you anything, and even then, I couldn't show you my panties because I don't have any," she took a sip of tea while looking Brook straight into the eye sockets.
The whole galley fell silent for a second, and then everyone burst out laughing. Even Robin was giggling next to Rage. The skeleton, cook, and the samurai had their jaws hanging open in astonishment.
"What does 'performance issues' mean?" the kid with a black top knot asked the tall samurai, causing another burst of laughter.
"You should explain it to your kid," Rage addressed the samurai. "After all, it's a common affliction. There are pills for that, right Chopper?"
"Yeah, the pharmacological treatment is pretty simple. However, the best results are achieved when it's combined with psychotherapy to work out any psychological issues," Chopper explained without missing a beat as he continued eating his meal.
"I still don't know what you're talking about," the kid persisted, looking between Rage, Chopper, and his father.
"Enough with this already," the blond cook cut in firmly. "Let's not discuss this stuff over a meal!"
"So, sexual harassment is good table manners, and actual sexual education is not?" Rage remarked, putting down her cup and sliding it away from her.
"What's sexual harassment?" the kid demanded loudly.
"It's when someone treats another person like an object for their own pleasure," explained Rage with a slight smirk. "Which is very bad, and you shouldn't do it or you'll end up as a hollow cadaver like this one right here," she pointed her thumb at the skeleton and winked at the kid, who suddenly turned pale.
"Rage-san it wasn't-" Brook stuttered while raising his hands in a placating manner, but she interrupted him immediately.
"Oh yes, you did. Hey Chopper, what happens when you put a bone in vinegar?" she asked the small doctor.
"Vinegar dissolves the calcium compounds in the bone, making it less rigid and more floppy," explained Chopper.
"Yeah, that's what happens to bad men who harass women, they turn flaccid forever," said Rage like it was common knowledge.
The guy with a long nose spit his drink. Straw Hat choked on his meat and Pirate Hunter Zoro hit his back hard until he managed to swallow everything. Then the captain howled with laughter.
"I like you," he stated while grabbing another handful of food.
The rest of the meal went peacefully, and Sanji employed Brook and Chopper to help with cleaning up.
Rage saw the green-haired swordsman grabbing a bottle of sake from a cabinet and had a sudden craving for booze.
"Hey, can I have one too?" she asked with a hopeful look on her face.
"No!" exclaimed Chopper. "Your liver and stomach are in poor condition, you shouldn't drink alcohol!"
"But I was in prison for over a year," she whined at the doctor. "Let me have some fun!"
"No!" repeated Chopper sternly.
She wanted to argue but Zoro grabbed her by the elbow and pulled her towards the door. "You've heard him. No booze, doctor's orders."
He smirked at her and winked with his good eye. Chopper looked utterly shocked but thanked Zoro for his help.
The moment they went out on the deck, Zoro pulled two bottles from his haramaki and gave one to Rage.
She took it with glee. "Going against doctor orders, you're quite a rebel."
"One bottle won't kill you," Zoro replied while sitting on a bench surrounding the main mast. "Besides, it's your first day being free, it's something worth celebrating."
Rage sat beside him, uncorked the bottle, saluted Zoro, and took a swig. The sour taste made her cringe, but she managed to swallow. The alcohol burned her throat like acid.
"Oh my fucking god," she grimaced. "You sure you didn't take vinegar from the cabinet?"
Zoro just laughed and drank from his bottle.
"You wanted the same stuff he drinks," she heard Sanji's voice and turned her head. The cook had a cigarette between his lips and was holding a tall glass with a milky pink liquid. "Drink this with the booze, it will be easier on your stomach."
She took the glass and took a tentative sip, trying not to sniff the strange liquid. It tasted almost good. At least it washed down the taste of horrible booze. "Thanks."
"You know, if the devil fruit you ate is really a copy of Ivankov's power, you'll be able to do some great stuff when you master it," Sanji stated while looking at the horizon. A wisp of cigarette smoke drifted steadily into the air.
Rage looked at him curiously. "What do you mean?"
"Iva-san can heal people from crippling disease," he blew smoke circles into the air which drifted away and vanished into the dark purple sky.
"You've met Ivankov?" Rage asked and took another sip of the strange drink.
"He spent two years on the okama island," Zoro informed her, before taking a long gulp from his bottle.
"You spent two years on Momoiro Island? That's so cool! How was it? What's Ivankov like? Please tell me all about them!" she showered him with excited questions, before a thought occurred to her. "But before that, please tell me your preferred pronouns, I don't want to make assumptions just by your appearance."
Sanji stared at her, clearly not getting the meaning of her words.
"She thinks you're a crossdresser, stupid cook," said Zoro with a glint of amusement and saluted Rage with the bottle of sake.
"I'm not like those fucking bastards! I was born a man, body and soul!" Sanji yelled so hard, the cigarette dropped from his mouth. He stomped away furiously and shut the galley door after himself with a loud thud.
"Geez, he's so fragile," Rage huffed with disappointment. "Guess this means no okama stories."
"Why are you so hyped about okamas? They're people like everyone else," said Zoro.
"Oh! You're one of the good ones," exclaimed Rage with glee and clinked her glass with the bottle he was holding.
Zoro frowned and Rage laughed under her breath. They sat in silence until it got dark and Robin came out from the bath carrying Momonosuke. It caused some uproar of jealousy from Sanji, Brook and Kin'emon. It got even louder when Nami announced the kid will be sleeping in the girls' room.
"Oh yeah! Rage you can sleep with us too," Nami told her with a smile. "And the bath is all yours if you want to relax in hot water. The towels are inside."
"Thanks, that sounds nice!" Rage smiled back at the redhead. "Also, thanks for the clothes."
"Don't mention it." The navigator sent a dirty look towards Cesar who was sitting on the other side of the deck.
"If you don't mind, I'll sleep on the deck."
Nami looked surprised. "There's free space in our room, since it's only me and Robin."
Yep, here comes the awkwardness. "I don't want to be locked up in a small, dark room."
Nami's brows furrowed for a split second, then she seemed to piece the information together, and her face softened. "I'll get you more blankets and a pillow." She whirled around and strode towards the cabins.
Rage looked at her swishing hair with a smile. The woman was easy on the eyes.
She downed the rest of the strange drink, then passed the bottle of sake to Zoro. "Thanks for the drink. I might not be able to stomach anymore though."
Zoro took the bottle with a slight scowl on his lips. She gave him a brief smile and walked away to avoid any comments about her mental state.
Quickly, she dropped the glass in the galley and headed towards the bathroom, relieved to be alone.
She sat in the tub for a long time, letting the hot water soothe the various aches in her body. She was feeling a bit better after absorbing some of Caesar's hormones, getting two full meals and several IV bags of fluids. However, the hormones barely took the edge off, and it was really hard to refrain from taking more whenever somebody was near her. It did nothing for her mental health. Her brain felt sluggish and foggy, making it difficult to control her emotions.
Rage suspected it all had to do with the artificial devil fruit, but she didn't know what to do to make it feel okay, besides taking hormones from other people. The artificial hormones she was given earlier didn't work, they only reminded her of all the times she was injected, and agonizing pain consumed her whole body. A couple of times they made her absorb hormones from animals, and she vomited and dry heaved until she pushed it all out of her system.
The few times she felt relief were when she killed. It happened when she was weak and barely held on to life. She didn't have any restraint when she was presented with a human and ordered to do more experiments. She drained those people dry. Her strength came back, but guilt kicked in so hard it was suffocating.
She needed to figure out the devil fruit. She had too many questions without answers. In the morning, she could talk to Chopper about the physical aspects; he was friendly and eager to help. The Surgeon of Death seemed to know a lot about fake devil fruits and had stayed on Punk Hazard for some time. She could smell him when he walked by her cell. He surely had the answers she needed. Unfortunately, he was focused on his plan to take down Doflamingo and was very unapproachable. She'd need to draw his attention and make him come to her.
Emerging from the water, she dried herself with an extremely fluffy towel that felt luxurious. She searched the shelves and found a bottle of rubbing oil. The pink sign on the label said 'For smooth and radiant skin,' and the oil smelled of almonds and roses. She poured some on her palm and spread it on her back as best as she could.
Turning to the mirror, she saw her whole back covered in mangled scars. They were a memento of the interrogation she went through after being caught by slavers. The scars were thick and stiff, hindering her movement. The skin on her back didn't stretch enough with all the scar tissue. Rubbing the oil would soften it a bit and broaden her range of movement, something she'd need to show off her skills.
Her thoughts spiraled towards the information she overheard when the Straw Hats and Trafalgar Law were planning their attack on Dressrosa. Joker was Doflamingo's alias in the underworld. She was familiar with the name Joker. He was a firearms smuggler and slave trafficker. The people who caught her were working for him as part of a slavers ring, which she was tasked to take down with her girls. This motherfucker was responsible for so much tragedy in the world, that it was infuriating. She might as well join the Straw Hats to finish off the bastard. After all, he was the one behind her imprisonment and funded Cesar's research. Revenge was in order.
She turned to face the mirror and eyed herself. She was all bones. No wonder the skeleton hit on her, only a corpse would find her attractive. Her cheeks were hollowed, making her cheekbones look sharper. Her eyes were sunken, and the skin around them was several tones darker than her beige skin. She could count all her ribs just by looking at the reflection in the mirror. She shimmied her chest, and her boobs moved floppily like empty skin sacks.
Yeah, she looked like she was one leg in a grave already. She might as well go with these crazy people and do something good before her body gave out.