Hey! What just grabbed me?

Temperatures rose into the low 30's today. With the forecast for extreme cold later in the week, it cried out to be a walking day (or should I say a walking evening?).

Home, dressed in layers, I headed out. Walking on a crisp evening, traversing mainly dry pavement with some traces of ice and remnants of last night's teasing bit of snow. The roads were quiet, dark with scattered muted pools of lighter surface, decorated by the reflection from the occasional street light.

Walking, quiet, fast walking...

Hey! What was that? All of a sudden, something grabbed my leg! My first thought was that it was an animal, but I didn't hear anything. Something grabbed my leg. And then it let me go.

At first I kept walking, but after a very short period of time, I knew that I had to stop and go back. I needed to know what it was. The answer? A jagged branch, with a Y-shaped notch in it. Not heavy. I must have stepped on it in a way that made it come to life. It flipped up behind me and wrapped itself around my leg. Then as I continued walking, it fell to the ground once more, ready to startle the next unsuspecting walker.