Summary: How can a game of chess change everything?

Genre: Family
Rating: K
Spoilers: None
Warnings: None
Main Parings: GSR
Minor Parings: None
Other Characters: Grissom kids, Mrs. Davidson (OC)


Chapter 24: Another Extraordinary One

August 11, 2021

William, now 11, was waiting for his father in the living room, who was finishing up the dishes in the kitchen, at the chess table so they could play a game.

Now that he has gotten older and was into competitive chess, whether it was with the chess club at school or local, and a few times national, tournaments, there wasn't a day that went by he wasn't sitting at a chess table, sometimes even twice a day, and about 95% of the time it was against his father, his strongest competitor. Not that his mother is a slouch at the chess table, but at times he gets the feeling that she lets him win. It was never proven and he knew she would never admit it out-loud, but he had noticed she takes a different strategy when they are playing compared to how she plays against his father.

However, while he was waiting for his father on this particular night, another Grissom wanted to test her skills, not knowing this was about to change her life sooner than what could have been expected.

Katie, now 4, almost 5 in a few months, walked up to the chess table, grabbed a pawn and sat it down in an open and legal spot before saying with a smile. "I play with you brother."

Normally William was very patient with his sisters, always did what they wanted him to do, or at least most of the times that was the case, but tonight he was a little on edge, he felt he needed a true distraction and didn't think playing against his youngest sister would give that to him, so he shook his head while picking up the pawn before placing it back in its original spot. "Not tonight, Katie."

Katie frowned before picking up the piece again, placing it in the same spot as before and said. "Yes!"

He shook his head again, grabbed the piece again and sat it back in its original spot again. "No."

They went back and forth one more time before he sighed while looking at his mother, who had just walked out of the kitchen. "Mom, can you please distract Katie, I really want to play with dad tonight."

Sara smiled at her youngest and asked. "Katie, honey, you want to color with your sister and I?"

Katie shook her head, crossing her arms over her chest. "No, I want to play with William!"

As William sighed again, and before Sara could speak, Grissom came into the room and asked. "What's going on in here?"

Once William explained the situation, Grissom knelt down so he was eye-level with his youngest and spoke with a smile. "Katie, sweetie, tonight your brother wants to play with me, how about tomorrow we'll play together?"

But Katie wasn't having it, she was determined to play with her brother tonight, so she shook her head again. "No! I want to play tonight, with William."

Grissom was going to stay something else to his little girl, but the look in Katie's eyes stopped him. It was a competitive look he's seen in his wife and other two kids multiple times before, and something deep down inside told him that this wasn't going to be an ordinary game when it involves a younger child, she was ready to play the game like it was meant to be played, so being a scientist, and always curious how his children's minds work, wanted to see what she could actually do.

He looked at his son a second later, and William, knowing that look, sighed one last time and spoke before his father could. "Come on dad..."

But Grissom cuts him off, his mind also made up. "I want to see what she can do." Before William opened his mouth again, he continued. "If she hinders your game too much, I'll step in, ok?"

Still not a 100% liking the idea, but accepting the compromise, William nodded. "Ok."

Grissom gave him a smile and nod before looking at his youngest again. "You can play." Katie started to get an excited look before Grissom continued with a little more serious tone. "But, this is a serious game tonight, you have to play by the rules, and if I feel you're not, I'm going to step in, ok?"

Katie nodded with a smile before she wrapped her arms around his neck. "OK, thank you, daddy."

He chuckled and wrapped an arm around her waist. "You're welcome."

After father and daughter pulled back, Katie stood across from her brother at the chess table, and as Grissom stood up, he looked over at Sara, who was giving him a curious look while he was giving her a 'trust me' look, so she nodded with a smile before Grissom grabbed the chair and moved it to the side of the table and sat down, then a moment later the game started.


By the end of it, to say that Grissom was impressed was an understatement, he cleared his throat before smiling at his daughter. "Now, what do you say, ladybug?"

Katie held out her hand and said with a graceful smile. "Good game, William."

William, who was still in shock on how competitive the game actual turned out to be, cleared his throat while lifting his eyes from the board, and smiled at his youngest sister while shaking her hand. "You too, Katie."

As they release hands, Katie smirked. "I'll get you next time."

All William could do was smile, as their parents chuckled before Sara spoke. "Alright Katie, say goodnight to your father and brother, it's time for bed."

Katie nodded, and went to her brother first before going to her father. "I love you, daddy, goodnight."

Wrapping his arms around his youngest, he kissed her temple and whispered. "And I love you, ladybug, sweet dreams."

After one more kiss, Katie rushed to her mother, who was holding out her hand towards her, and took her hand before they headed up the stairs while the little girl was happily telling her, as if Sara wasn't watching the game herself, how close she was to beating her brother.

When it was just father and son in the room, who were still at the chess table, Grissom asked after clearing his throat. "Son, did you..."

William shook his head as he looked at his father, still shocked. "No, I didn't hold back a second. I played the game as I saw fit. I mean you saw it, you don't think I didn't play 'my' game, did you?"

"No, you played it as if I would have in that particular game."

All William could do at that point was chuckle and shake his head. "Well dad, I think after tonight, it's safe to say you have another genius on your hands." He then took a breath, still amazed by his sister's skill. "Probably greater than I'll ever be." Which as he thought about it, tonight shouldn't have really surprised him, considering she did learn to walk, talk, and read quicker than him or Isabella did.

Grissom placed a hand on his son's back a second later and spoke softly. "Hey, I don't want you to feel you have to compete one another to get our attention, whether you guys are learning something at a quick pace or need that extra time, isn't going to change how we feel about each of you. All that we ask for is that you try your best, and if you do that, we'll never be disappointed, alright?"

William slowly nodded with a smile. "Yeah, alright, dad."

He nodded with a smile, then he cleared his throat and said. "Now, if tonight is truly the start of something for your sister, we need to be supportive of her, you know how other people/kids are when they feel/see someone is 'different'."

William knew that for sure, so he nodded before replying in a carrying, yet determined tone. "Of course, she's my sister, and I'll always be behind her, no matter what."

Seeing that protectiveness in his son's eyes, which really had been there the second he saw his youngest sister for the first time after she was born, Grissom nodded with another smile. "Thank you, and not only for that, but for tonight as well."

William slightly chuckled as Grissom removed his hand from his back. "Well, least I can say the goal was accomplished, I did get my distraction for the night."

Grissom chuckled before he asked. "Sweating bullets there, were you, son?"

William stood up with another nod. "No doubt." Grissom chuckled again before William cleared his throat and asked with a smile. "But, can we keep what happened tonight between us, I'm not ready to hear the teasing that I almost got beat by my four year old sister."

Grissom chuckled one more time before replying. "Well, your secret is safe with your parents, but you might have to bribe both of your sisters to keep quiet. I think in their eyes the 'girls' just got a win tonight."

William chuckled one more tome. "I guess I'll have to think of something then." Grissom nodded with a smile before William wrapped his arms around his father's neck. "Goodnight, dad. Love you."

Wrapping his arms around his son, Grissom whispered in return. "Goodnight, buddy. Love you too."

When they pulled back, William headed upstairs so he could get ready for bed, and after staring at the chess table a few more minutes, still amazed at what he witnessed tonight, Grissom got up, locked up the house and turned the lights out before heading upstairs himself.


Once both Sara and Grissom were in their room with the door closed, Sara looked at her husband, also still in shock on what she witnessed tonight. "Normally I probably would say that what we witnessed tonight was a fluke, but considering that we already..."

Grissom cuts her off with a smile as he walked up to her and cupped her cheek. "Have two extraordinary children, it isn't a stretch to think our third one is just as extraordinary."

Sara chuckled and smirked. "Yeah, thanks a lot."

He chuckled before replying with love. "Hey, the last time I checked, I wasn't alone in that process."

Looking at him with love, she whispered with a slight passion to her tone. "No, you definitely weren't."

They just looked at one another in awe for several minutes in silence, then she cleared her throat before asking. "So, now what?"

Grissom smiled with bright eyes. "Well, we are scientist, what do we do next to be sure it wasn't a fluke?"

Sara started to smile. "Conduct another test."

He nodded then raised an eyebrow. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

Sara nodded. "Mrs. Davidson."

After Grissom nodded with a smile, Sara sighed as she moved to sit on the end of the bed, and Grissom moved towards her a second later with concern. "Sara?"

She looked up at her with tears in her eyes. "She's only four years old, I thought I would have one more year with her before we would send her off to school."

He kneeled down and cupped her cheek. "Now, let's not jump to conclusions before we..."

Sara cuts him off. "Come on, Griss, I think we both know that it's true."

He nodded. "Ok, you're probably right." He took a breath then continued. "But we don't have to send her off to school this year. We are both capable enough of giving her lessons to keep her active until the next school year."

Sara slowly started to smile, feeling a little better. "Yeah?"

He nodded with a smile. "Yeah."

She wrapped her arms around his neck and whispered. "Thank you."

He wrapped his arms around her waist. "No need to thank me, but you're welcome."

He knew how precious this time was for Sara, considering Katie was their last child.

While they were pulling back, Sara spoke again. "So, I'll call Mrs. Davidson tomorrow and see if she can help."

Grissom nodded, then he smirked. "She might think she hit the jackpot with us."

Sara chuckled as they stood up. "Or thinks the universe doesn't want her teaching any of our kids."

After another round of chuckling. they went through their nightly routine before cuddling in bed, falling asleep in each other's arms as they thought about the amazing children they had, which that thought was nothing new.


August 16, 2021

Since Mrs. Davidson was on vacation with her family before the start of the new school year, it took them a few days to get in touch with her, but once they did, she was happy to help anyway that she could, and offered her classroom so the youngest Grissom could take a test on where she stood with other kids.

A few days after that, there was a knock on the front door of the Grissom house, and William was the one that opened it, so the young boy smiled as he said. "Hi, Mrs. Davidson."

Mrs. Davidson smiled in return before replying. "Hi William, it's a shame I no longer see you in the halls, but I heard you were progressing very nicely in Middle School, I'm proud of you."

William shyly smiled as he looked down. "Thank you, Mrs. Davidson."

They all chuckled, and Grissom, while standing up from the couch, said. "Come in."

Once Mrs. Davidson, who had a shoulder bag, came into the house, she greeted the girls before Sara sent them outside to play, and as they were doing that, Grissom asked her if she wanted any tea, so the other woman replied. "Ice tea if you don't mind."

Grissom nodded before asking. "Lemon?"

She nodded with a smile in return. "Yes, please."

Grissom looked at his wife, and she nodded in return. "Me too."

After one more nod and smile, Grissom left the room to get the drinks from the kitchen, and as Mrs. Davidson sat down on the couch, she commented, looking around the room at the art pieces they had hanging on the walls, pictures of their family, some even included their extended ones, even the little knickknacks on the multiple bookshelves and tables that she could have envisioned they would have in their home. "You have a beautiful home."

Sara nodded with a smile. "Thank you."

There was a moments pause before Sara asked about her family, and she proudly announced that she became a first time grandmother when her oldest child/son, which she has two of them and a daughter, and daughter-in law had a son of their own during the summer vacation.

When Grissom came back into the room, they talked a little more about their families, then about 20 minutes later, Mrs. Davidson placed her glass on the end table while speaking with a smile. "I bet your anxious on those test results."

Grissom smiled shyly while Sara spoke after clearing her throat. "Well, with William and Isabella it was a phone call and a letter, so yeah, maybe we are a little more anxious this time around."

Mrs. Davidson gave them a warm smile. "I get it, and let me assure you that you have nothing to be anxious about, so just try and relax."

They took a breath while Mrs. Davidson opened her bag, and as she pulled out a few papers, Grissom asked. "So, is it like William and Isabella?"

The other woman shook her head as she stood up and walked to the love seat before handing the papers to them. "Not exactly." While they were looking through the results, Mrs. Davidson started speaking again. "As you can tell she scored higher on certain subjects than others, better than even some of the students who are older than her, and even the ones she did struggle with, it wasn't by much, so I believe that if she were to start school this year, I would have no problem recommending her on going to second grade." Mrs. Davidson took a moment to let that sink in with them, then she continued. "But, I'm sure I won't be out of line if I said you don't want her to go this year?"

Grissom looked up from the papers and cleared his throat with a nod. "You would be correct."

She nodded, then finished as her smile got bigger towards the end. "Then, with that said, if she continues to learn through this year, she'll only improve her scores, so I don't see any problems of her going straight to third grade next year." When they looked at her with shock, Mrs. Davidson smirked a little. "I'm glad you were already sitting down."

She let them take a moment, then Grissom cleared his throat again. "Wow."

They all chuckled before Sara spoke. "But, I guess we shouldn't be too surprised, she was always a fast learner."

"You have amazing children, and I'm glad that they don't have to feel like they have to hide it, that their parents are accepting of how extraordinary they really are."

This time it was Sara who had cleared her throat before speaking. "Of course, we just want them to be happy and themselves. It blows my mind that some parents can't see that in their own children."

Mrs. Davidson nodded one more time. "It happens more times than I care to admit."

Sara and Grissom were both on the same page as her, so they nodded, and as they stood up while the other woman went to grab her bag, Sara spoke again. "It's just a shame that our kids won't have you as their teacher."

After her bag was in place, she smiled at the Grissoms. "If I knew I would have met your kids in the future, I probably would have asked for a higher grade to teach, just so I could actually see in person how they are in a classroom." They all chuckled again as they walked towards the door, and after she stepped out of the house, she turned to them and spoke again. "If you need any study books, let me know. I'll be happy to help."

They smiled while Grissom held out his hand first. "Thank you for everything, Mrs. Davidson."

She took his hand with the smile still on her face. "You're welcome, Dr. Grissom, it was my pleasure."

After shaking Sara's hand, they all said goodbye before Mrs. Davidson turned and walked away while Grissom closed the front door, then once it clicked shut, they looked at one another and started smiling while cupping each other's cheeks, then they started chuckling while Sara asked. "Did that just happen? Our youngest could be a third grader next year?"

Grissom nodded with a smile. "It would appear so, my dear." Then he moved closer to her ear and whispered with a smirk. "I guess we put a little extra in our youngest."

She chuckled while wrapping her arms around his neck as he moved his lips to kiss her neck. "I love you, so much."

She sighed in content as she closed her eyes, feeling his lips on her neck. "And I love you, babe."

They held one another for a few moments before pulling back and looking into one another's eyes, then after a moment or two as the moment sunk in, something else came to their minds, and Sara gasped a little. "Griss, what about Isabella? How do you think she'll feel about her younger sister sharing the same class, same grade as her."

He sighed while shaking his head. "I don't know."

"I mean, on one hand, the thought of them being in the same class is a comforting feeling, knowing how some students could be towards her, and it would be nice for her older sister to be there for her. But on the other hand, I don't want Isabella to feel discouraged, like she feels she's not doing enough, when we all know she's doing more than enough."

He took her hand with a nod. "I know, we'll talk to her, try and help her understand that she isn't doing anything wrong."

She nodded before they headed towards the back door to watch their children play, hoping that what they found out about their youngest doesn't hurt their middle child in someway.


AN: More to come soon. Thanks for reading, and please review.