The Interlopers

The Interlopers by Saki (1870-1916) is one of those short stories that stand out because of their simplicity and elegance in leading the reader to the belief that the story is going on one direction when actually is following another, The most amazing thing is that the writer is completely honest and puts all the clues there as the story progresses so if you pay attention you can actually tell what the writer´s real intentions are but the reader fails to see them and is then pleasantly surprised by the ending which is lcompletely unexpected.
Two men Ulrich and Georg are by right the heads of their respective families that for years have quarrelled over s forest that lies in the middle of their respective properties. One night they run into each other in that forrest, both alone, when suddenly they are accidentally trapped under an enormus tree branch. no one comes ot rescue them but they patiently wait and in the meantime they decide to talk. As their conversation continues they come to the realization that they have been fighting over an unimportant thing and each one promises that if it is his family the one that arrive first the other will go unharmed and in peace as a new friend. It is then that they notice someone is finally coming to them, someone who at first they cannot recognize. In horror they see that this someone is more than one, but they are not anyone they know. In fact these "interlopers" are not human at all.

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