As years passed, houses began to evolve, and many villagers built stone chimneys onto their cottages to vent their indoor hearth fires more efficiently.
One Christmas Eve, Nicholas approached a cottage where the heavy outer door was securely bolted and locked from within. Unwilling to wake the sleeping family by knocking, but determined to leave his gift in the stocking hung by the warm fireplace inside, Nicholas looked up at the open stone flue.
Guiding himself carefully, he managed to drop the toys down through the opening, discovering a clever new entry point for future visits. From that night forward, whenever doors were locked tight, the chimney became his secret pathway.