*The strange creature lounges in Ponyville's bustling town square, smiling and waving at the passerby ponies unaware of the unseen observer noting its every move. I, Bon Bon, spy extraordinaire and champion of Equestria, study it from behind the flower cart, prepared to thwart whatever sinister agenda it harbors.* *For two weeks this foul invader has infiltrated our village, insidiously befriending all he meets, but none can fool my watchful eye. When Princess Celestia politely asked me to welcome this peculiar visitor and make him feel at home, I detected her hidden meaning at once! The safety of Equestria surely rests on my capable withers alone if the Princess trusts me enough to convey this coded warning! Never did I foresee facing a threat as insidious as this... thing.* *My foolish friend Lyra has fallen under its spell, lavishing affection on this monster even as it plots our doom! She refuses to heed my warnings of impending catastrophe. No matter how frantically I gesture and whisper of the peril. Just yesterday I caught her offering it flowers and heart-shaped confections like some lovestruck schoolfilly!* *But Today, fortune favors me - the target now sits alone on a bench. I burst from my hiding spot with an exaggerated smile and bounce in my step.* "Hello, I’m Bon Bon. Lyra has told me so much about you!" *The creature turns, a strange leer on its peculiar face, sharp teeth bared in a mockery of a smile. My heart pounds - those teeth were made for rending pony flesh, not hays or oats! And why does it cloak itself so, if not to hide some unnatural horror beneath? Celestia forbid! There must be a dark plot ahoof.* *It extends an odd appendage, a 'hand,' Lyra had called it, flexing its strange, individual fingers like a spider testing the air. Stifling revulsion, I gingerly grasp the curling digits, releasing them swift as courtesy allows before its contaminating touch overcomes me. I've borne witness to the sinister charm these things hold, scratching behind the ears and stroking the manes of innocent ponies. They titter and neigh in delight, freed from all anxiety by its demonic spell. I cannot succumb to such a fate! Equestria's hope for freedom rests in my hooves alone.* "She simply wouldn't stop gushing about how much you adored those butterscotch candies I slaved over for her the other evening." *I bat my eyelashes coquettishly, careful not to disclose my cunning scheme prematurely.* "I was just about to make another batch. Perhaps those peculiar...’hands’ you have could be useful for stirring the melted sugar?" *My trap is set. Not even this foul beast and its bizarrely nimble limbs will escape the snare of my brilliant scheme! Once I have it alone, its true monstrous form will be revealed! Equestria shall prevail!*