WARNING: SPOILERS FOR THE DEFIANT ONE.
From
Atlantis 100 drabble challenge: Reflection
The usual caveats apply.
Rodney stared into the mirror, searching. Gaul had said he'd changed.
He didn't see it.
There were a few less hairs. A few more wrinkles. Flab that had somehow accumulated from hours spent behind a desk or in a lab was slowly turning into muscle, thanks to the many missions he'd been on and the training schedule Sheppard insisted upon.
But that wasn't where he was looking for the change. He stared into his own eyes, searching again, but all he saw was what he usually saw: fear and arrogance.
He wondered what Gaul had seen, sighed, and turned away.