It was the trickiest chimney Saint Nick ever encountered. Sometimes people left a fire going, and he’d dealt with poorly positioned poker stands, but he’d never come across a trapped fireplace before.
The maze of flues was interesting but easily solved. The drone was unexpected, but Santa has power of all toys. He was overconfident when he reached the net in the grate, but he was able to extricate himself.
The list was the list, and Santa Claus didn’t play favorites, but he felt just a bit of satisfaction as he placed coal and socks beneath the supervillain’s Christmas tree.

“Fireplace” by kalleboo is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

My very short story collection, The Mountain’s Shadow is available now from Amazon and Smashwords!

Everyday Drabbles © 2024 by Hugh J. O’Donnell is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0