Does not performing night prayers mean that a person is not among the pious, based on the Quran's description of the pious as those who seek forgiveness at dawn?

Linguistically, taqwa (piety/God-consciousness) is the act of protecting oneself from what one fears and guards against. Technically, it means for a servant to place a shield between himself and what he fears from his Lord's wrath and displeasure, by performing acts of obedience and avoiding acts of disobedience. Qiyam al-Layl (night vigil prayer) is not a condition for obligatory taqwa; rather, it is among the characteristics of the pious and a recommended form of taqwa, because it helps the servant in matters of his religion and restrains him from indecency and evil. Taqwa is divided into obligatory, which is performing duties and avoiding prohibitions, and recommended, which is performing supererogatory acts of worship. The pious are those who believe in the Unseen, establish prayer, spend from what Allah has provided them, believe in what has been revealed to them and what was revealed before them, and are certain of the Hereafter. Taqwa and iman (faith) vary in increase and decrease.