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There was grey in his beard.

He didn't mind the grey in his hair, it was mostly in his temples and he thought it made him look... distinguished. Dignified. A little like Cary Grant.

But the beard thing, that was bothersome, especially since he had a five o'clock shadow about two hours after shaving. Before he went to bed if he hadn't shaved in the afternoon, the growth was enough to see the grey, in the merciless light of the bathroom.

He fingered his chin and cheek, trying to convince himself it was just an illusion. He didn't mind the scars, those were impressive, made him look rakish. But the grey -- it made him think of Sean Connery, without the toupee. Pretty soon he'd have an all-white beard and his hair would still be mostly dark.

Wasn't there some product that was for dying beards? Or maybe he could just shave twice a day, every day. McKay was always complaining about beard-burn anyway. He could also look into that laser hair removal thingy, get rid of the problem altogether. It might make him look younger, too.

There were lines around his eyes, too, that hadn't been there last year. He knew there were special treatments to get rid of those, but hell, that was just vanity. Harrison Ford got away with the craggy look, why couldn't he?

John leaned in a little closer, turned his face to one side and back. No, he was definitely getting older, there was no doubt about it. It was getting harder and harder to keep up with Ronon on their morning runs, and he couldn't bench-press nearly as much as he used to.

"What are you doing in here? Admiring yourself?"

McKay's voice broke his reverie abruptly and John turned, guilty for having been caught out. But Rodney's voice wasn't as acerbic as his words and his gaze was gentle.

"You think that laser hair removal stuff works on beards?" John asked, rubbing his cheek. "You're always complaining about beard-burn, and I just thought..."

Rodney grinned crookedly. "C'mon to bed, Grizzly Adams. I happen to like you just the way you are."

John smiled a little and turned away from the mirror, turning the light off as he left the room.