Line #311 Fanfic/Sleepless


1	Strange things happen in Ponyville. Foals start to disappear; their parents and siblings, struck by grief, will resort to every means to find the cause. Some of them blame timberwolves; some blame the zebra living in the forest. Some of them even blame their fellow ponies. None of them, however, suspects a little filly suffering from insomnia...
2
3	''[[http://www.fimfiction.net/story/193313/sleepless Sleepless]]'' is a ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' fanfiction by [[http://www.fimfiction.net/user/Samey90 Samey90]]. It tells the story of Diamond Tiara who struggles with severe insomnia causing her to lose control over her body. To make things worse, it causes her to unconsciously murder other foals.
4
5	The fanfic has four sequels, [[http://www.fimfiction.net/story/208440/thirsty Thirsty]], which continues the Berry Punch arc from the first story, [[http://www.fimfiction.net/story/203159/manehattan-blues Manehattan Blues]], which is set in the same universe, seven years after the original story and is focused on Babs Seed's life in Manehattan, filled with crime and poverty, and [[http://www.fimfiction.net/story/215448/children-of-equestria Children of Equestria]], which takes place ten years after the end of ''Sleepless'' and [[CanonWelding connects this story to ''Manehattan Blues'']]. An {{Interquel}} called [[https://www.fimfiction.net/story/225008/elektrichka Elektrichka]] was written as an introduction to ''Manehattan Blues''. The sixth story called ''Moonwing'' and focusing on Scootaloo and Archer is in the works.
6
7	Not to be confused with the 2017 film ''Film/{{Sleepless}}''.
8
9	!!The series contains examples of the following tropes:
10
11	[[foldercontrol]]
12
13	[[folder:Sleepless]]
14	* AbsurdlySharpBlade: Averted. The knife Diamond Tiara uses is too small to [[spoiler: sever Alula’s wing]].
15	* TheAlcoholic: Berry Punch and Vinyl Scratch.
16	* AlcoholicParent: Berry Punch to her daughter, Ruby.
17	* AlcoholInducedIdiocy: Cloud Kicker in chapter 10.
18	* ArcWords: “There’s no pageant”.
19	* AristocratsAreEvil: Sunshine Rainbows invokes this trope when she suggests that Twilight Sparkle is the killer.
20	* AssholeVictim: Subverted. It seemed that it’ll be Scootaloo’s fate, but Diamond Tiara [[spoiler: ended up killing Alula instead of her.]]
21	* TheAtoner: Diamond Tiara at the end of the fic.
22	* BerserkButton: Hurting her daughter is Berry Punch's one. [[spoiler: It doesn't end well for Vinyl.]]
23	** Also, suggesting Berry that Ruby hates her.
24	* BewareOfTheNiceOnes: Diamond Tiara isn’t exactly nice, but she’s still a 9-year-old filly. Also, Curtain Call seems rather nice at first.
25	* BigShutUp: [[spoiler: Scootaloo/Alula]] delivers one, complete with ThisIsForEmphasisBitch.
26	** Also, Berry Punch to [[spoiler: Vinyl Scratch]] in chapter 7, punctuated with a GroinAttack.
27	* BreakTheCutie: Zippoorwhill. Also, Diamond Tiara.
28	* BreatherEpisode: Chapter 4, appropriately named “Sunny Day”.
29	* TheBully: Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon. Sunshine Rainbows also qualifies.
30	* TheButlerDidIt: Discussed and lampshaded by Silver Spoon.
31	* ChekhovsGun: Pepper’s pills.
32	* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: Curtain Call, or rather her hallucination.
33	* CooldownHug: Octavia and Dr. Stable in chapter 9.
34	* CreepyChild: A couple of those appear in chapter 6. First we have Curtain Call, who [[spoiler: killed her parents and went to Hearth’s Warming Eve pageant rehearsal]], Pepper, a paranoic who’s off his meds, and EmoTeen Sunshine Rainbows.
35	* CreepyMonotone: Diamond Tiara in chapter 11.
36	* DeadpanSnarker: Diamond Tiara, especially when she’s about to kill someone:
37	-->“No need to hurry? Listen, there’s no time for your games! I can die here!” [[spoiler: Scootaloo]] hissed and rubbed her leg.
38	-->“Funny you mention that…”
39	* DemotedToExtra: Mane 6. Rainbow Dash has a few lines, Twilight is mentioned, Applejack and Rarity make cameo appearances, and Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy don’t appear at all.
40	* DiedInYourArmsTonight: [[spoiler: Silver Spoon]] in Diamond Tiara’s arms.
41	* DisappearedDad: Silver Spoon's father. There are hints suggesting that [[AbusiveParents it's better that way.]]
42	* DrowningMySorrows: Vinyl Scratch after Zippoorwhill finds the bodies of [[spoiler: Alula and Twist]].
43	* EmoTeen: Sunshine Rainbows isn’t exactly a teen, but she certainly qualifies.
44	* ExactWords: From chapter 5:
45	-->Once again, Diamond Tiara thought about Silver Spoon – it was her mother whom she’d heard complaining about making storms a “bloody picnic”.
46	* ExtremeMeleeRevenge: Berry Punch in chapter 7.
47	* FantasticRacism: Against zebras and bat ponies. Cloud Kicker is the best example.
48	* {{Fingore}}: Or rather wingore.
49	* FliesEqualsEvil: Zippoorwhill’s nightmares at the beginning of chapter 8.
50	* ForgivenButNotForgotten. The ending. Overlaps with ReformedButRejected.
51	* FreudianExcuse: Why Silver Spoon became a bully:
52	-->She [Diamond Tiara] was so used to happy, mischievous Silver Spoon that she’d almost forgotten how vulnerable she could be. Deep inside, she’d always known that her friend’s usual behaviour was merely a mask; she was hanging out with Diamond, agreeing with every her word, to forget how she used to be bullied herself.
53	* AGodAmI: Diamond Tiara briefly in chapter 6, after killing [[spoiler: Alula and Twist]].
54	* GoingColdTurkey: Berry Punch tries this after [[spoiler: Ruby's death]]. The subsequent delirium almost kills her.
55	* GossipyHens: Some of Ponyville dwellers, including Nurse Redheart, Lily, and Cherry Berry.
56	* GratuitousSpanish: The title of the first chapter. It's also a homage to an etching by Creator/FranciscoDeGoya ''Art/TheSleepOfReasonProducesMonsters'' (Spanish: ''El sueño de la razón produce monstruos'')
57	* {{Hallucinations}}: They’re getting creepier as Diamond’s condition progresses.
58	* HearingVoices: Diamond Tiara, of course.
59	* HeelRealisation: Briefly in chapter 2:
60	-->Silver, Babs Seed… Do I even have real friends or just followers?
61	* HellIsThatNoise: Diamond Tiara hears a high-pitched noise just before [[spoiler: she kills Pipsqueak]].
62	* {{Hikikomori}}: Downplayed; Silver Spoon rarely leaves her room and is socially awkward, but she still leaves her room from time to time and is a good friend with Diamond Tiara.
63	* ImagineSpot: Diamond Tiara has one during [[spoiler: Pipsqueak's]] funeral, when she imagines Ponyville citizens lynching her.
64	** There’s also one at the beginning of chapter 10.
65	* [[ImAHumanitarian I’m an Equinitarian]]: Pepper believes that the doctors added Sunshine Rainbows’ brain to his food. Since Sunshine is alive, it’s probably just one of his delusions.
66	* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: [[spoiler: Silver Spoon]].
67	* InspiredBy: Bootsy Slickmane's short story [[http://www.fimfiction.net/story/193073/insomnia Insomnia]].
68	* InstantSedation: Subverted. It takes some time before [[spoiler: Zippoorwhill]] goes down, and even then she’s weakened rather than knocked out cold.
69	* InterruptedSuicide: [[spoiler: Diamond Tiara]] tries to hang herself in chapter 11, but is stopped by Apple Bloom. [[spoiler: She promptly tries to kill her instead]].
70	* ItWasADarkAndStormyNight: Chapter 5 is called “Stormy Night” as a reference to this trope.
71	* KnightInSourArmor: Minuette gets increasingly more cynical over the course of the fic:
72	-->Cherry Berry glared at her angrily. “I thought you were helping my cousin…” she said.
73	-->Minuette levitated a mug of cider in front of her, drank the rest of the beverage and threw the mug back on the table, making all the glasses jangle. “I’m helping her, but I still think she’s an idiot,” she replied, trying to focus her gaze on Cherry Berry.
74	* LethallyStupid: Cloud Kicker.
75	-->’’’Riot Control:’’’ If I recall correctly, she’s kinda dense… You’ve mentioned she said that she wanted to burn some bat pony’s house but then someone stole her kerosene, right?
76	* LovableNerd: Silver Spoon and Twist.
77	* MacabreMothMotif: Anytime a moth appears, someone will surely die.
78	* MadnessMantra: “There’s no pageant”.
79	* MeaningfulName: Played with in Sunshine Rainbows’ case. She’s a brightly-coloured filly with depression and suicidal tendencies.
80	* MindScrew: chapter 6. [[spoiler: Diamond Tiara hallucinates about killing Scootaloo and Silver Spoon, killing Alula and Twist instead]].
81	** The ending, consisting of [[spoiler: various pieces of incoherent narration, parts of conversations between doctors, and Diamond Tiara’s thoughts, punctuated by the words “Happy Birthday, Diamond Tiara”, repeated ten times.]]
82	* MissingMom: Diamond Tiara's mother. [[spoiler: The circumstances of her death suggest that she suffered of similar condition as her daughter.]]
83	* MoodWhiplash: The ending of chapter 2. Vinyl, Octavia, Lyra, and Bon Bon are joking while going home from the pub and then they [[spoiler: find Ruby's body]].
84	%%* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Diamond Tiara in chapter 6.
85	* NeatFreak: Diamond Tiara washes herself very carefully after she [[spoiler: kills Pipsqueak]].
86	* NeverSuicide: Downplayed, then played straight: Dr. Stable thinks about the reasons why a seven-year-old would commit suicide, but doesn’t suspect anything. For Riot Control, however, the case stinks.
87	* NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished: Poor Pipsqueak. He just tried to be nice to Diamond Tiara and walk her home when she [[spoiler: smashed his head with a rock]].
88	** Vinyl Scratch. She helps Silver Spoon after [[spoiler: Scootaloo beats her]], establishes the Neighbourhood Watch and later is [[spoiler: beaten to death by Berry Punch]].
89	** Twist. She does everything to cheer Silver Spoon up. [[spoiler: Few hours later she's dead]].
90	* NoHoldsBarredBeatdown: Berry Punch gives one to [[spoiler: Vinyl]] at the beginning of chapter 7 and [[spoiler: ends up killing her.]]
91	* ObsessivelyOrganized: Diamond Tiara cleans her room and puts her things in order during the nights, out of boredom.
92	* OldCopYoungCop: Riot Control and Front Kick.
93	* OrphanedPunchline: Vinyl Scratch's story in chapter 2. Overlaps with CurseCutShort.
94	--> ...and then I said "Honey, that's not my horn, it's that guy's–"
95	* OrWasItADream Briefly in chapter 5. [[spoiler: [[MindScrew It was and wasn’t at the same time]].]]
96	* ParentalNeglect: Sunshine Rainbows’ parents are more interested in their funeral parlour that their daughter.
97	* PassedInTheirSleep: In contrast to other deaths in the fic, [[spoiler: Vinyl]] passes away quietly: she dies off-screen, never waking up from the coma.
98	* PlayingWithFire: Curtain Call in Diamond Tiara’s vision in chapter 10.
99	* PoliceAreUseless: Justified, since there’s only two of them.
100	* {{Polyamory}}: Vinyl, Octavia, and Neon Lights live in, as Vinyl puts it “[[BuffySpeak fancy Prench thingy]]”. [[spoiler: It doesn’t last.]]
101	* PrecisionFStrike: The fic is rather tame when it comes to F-bombs, but the one delivered by [[spoiler: Scootaloo/Alula]] in chapter 6 is really precise.
102	** Also, Octavia calling Neon Lights “son of a bitch” in chapter 8.
103	* PunctuatedForEmphasis: During Vinyl and Berry argument in chapter 2:
104	-->Look at my mouth. I. Didn’t. Touch. Your. Daughter. Got it? Now, get out.
105	* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: Scootaloo delivers one to Silver Spoon, complete with punching her.
106	* RedOniBlueOni: Diamond Tiara is red to Silver Spoon’s blue.
107	* {{Room101}}: The secure ward of the mental hospital Diamond Tiara is in.
108	* SanitySlippage: Diamond Tiara over the course of the fic. Also, Ponyville citizens in general.
109	* TheScapegoat: Vinyl thinks that of herself:
110	-->I don’t know why, but ponies in this town treat me like a fucking zebra! Too much noise? Scratch’s fault. Vomit on your doormat? Scratch was there. You can’t raise your kid? Scratch came and ate it…
111	* TheSchizophreniaConspiracy: Pepper, Diamond Tiara’s paranoid friend from the asylum.
112	* SherlockScan: Diamond Tiara “scans” Silver Spoon spare pair of glasses in chapter four.
113	* ShrinkingViolet: Silver Spoon.
114	* SideBet: Front Kick and the laboratory technicians make bets about who was the killer. Riot Control finds it inappropriate.
115	* StockBritishPhrases: Sunshine Rainbows and Minuette use “tosser” occasionally.
116	* StressVomit: Diamond Tiara in chapter 10 after she realises that [[spoiler: she burned down the filly scouts camp]].
117	* TalkingInYourSleep: Sunshine Rainbows:
118	-->Diamond Tiara glared at Sunshine Rainbows angrily. Her roommate had just turned in her bed and began muttering some random words. She was doing that from time to time; sometimes they weren’t even words, just some nonsensical blends of syllables. On other occasions, Sunshine was having long conversations with Diamond Tiara in her sleep. They were usually absurd – for example, two nights before she’d spent fifteen minutes talking about some colt Diamond Tiara didn’t know and [[BreadEggsMilkSquick how good he’d look in the coffin.]]
119	* ThereAreNoTherapists: Averted; Diamond Tiara consults a doctor about her insomnia. She also goes to a mental hospital because of it.
120	* TitleDrop: Occurs quite often in later chapters.
121	* TooDumbToLive: [[spoiler: Silver Spoon]]. When she finds out who was the killer, she goes to Diamond Tiara herself instead of telling anyone.
122	* TraumaButton: Zippoorwhill has several after she found [[spoiler: Alula and Twist’s bodies]], including barking of the dog and buzzing of insects.
123	* TwistEnding: [[spoiler: Diamond Tiara still has hallucinations]].
124	* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds: Diamond Tiara. She suffered weeks of no sleep and that caused her to lose control of her actions and multiple foals against her will.
125	* WordSchmord: Minuette in chapter 9:
126	-->“Watch-shmatch!” Minuette exclaimed. The bar immediately silenced. “There’s no watch since [[spoiler: Vinyl]] kicked the bucket… Just a bunch of assholes who’ll believe in every gossip…” She stood up, staggering. “Goodnight, paranoid tossers.”
127
128	[[/folder]]
129
130	[[folder:Thirsty]]
131
132	* TheAlcoholic: The premise of the fic is Berry Punch struggling with her alcoholism.
133	* AssShove: ImpliedTrope.
134	-->Minuette chuckled. “Please…” she said. “Berry told me that she drank anything she could get… They either smuggle it in–” She made a wide gesture showing exactly where.
135	* AttentionDeficitOOHSHINY: Pinkie Pie, according to Dr. Stable:
136	-->Ms. Pie doesn’t remember the whole conversation exactly, claiming to be distracted by a particularly shiny crystal in the wall
137	* AuthorCatchphrase: Minuette telling Dr. Stable that Berry “will be even better soon” echoes Lyra Heartstrings’ words from [[Fanfic/AKingdomDivided author’s other story]]. Doubles as MeaningfulEcho, since Lyra in that story [[spoiler: [[AteHisGun shot herself a few seconds later]]]].
138	* BrainwashedAndCrazy: Berry Punch, as a result of Minuette’s failed spell.
139	* CallForward: Guess what the next sequel is about…
140	-->Unlike some other towns in Equestria, Canterlot is quite safe after the sunset. It’s not Manehattan, torn by the fights between gangs consisting of underage colts or even fillies.
141	* CanonImmigrant: Schwalbe, one of the bat ponies searching for Berry Punch actually appeared in the author’s earlier story, ''The Sharpest Tool''.
142	* CreepyMonotone: [[spoiler: possessed!]]Berry Punch.
143	* EasterEgg: There’s ''Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn'' hidden in the coverart.
144	* EitherOrTitle: The actual title of the story is ''Thirsty, or The Curious Case of Berryshine Punch as told by Dr. Stable from Canterlot''.
145	* [[spoiler: EldritchAbomination:]] One lives beneath Canterlot.
146	* TheEvilsOfFreeWill: discussed.
147	-->'''Minuette:''' Her free will is what's killing her!
148	* FromBadToWorse: A pony turned into a bloodthirsty monster by a botched spell? Bad. The same pony hiding in the caves [[spoiler: only to be possessed by an Eldritch Abomination?]] Worse.
149	* GenreShift: In contrast to more psychological ‘’Sleepless’’, this one is a cosmic horror.
150	* HardboiledDetective: Dr. Stable’s narration is a mix between this and Lovecraftian narration.
151	* HellIsThatNoise: various background noises in the caves.
152	* {{Interquel}}: It’s chronologically second, but it was published after ‘’Manehattan Blues’’.
153	* KnightInSourArmor: Dr. Stable, in a way similar to Minuette in the first part.
154	-->Of course, it’s not like there’s no crime here. It exists – but since it’s usually committed by the rich ponies, it’s often called “diplomacy”, “business”, or “an effect of being eccentric”.
155	* LastSecondWordSwap: Happens to Dusk Dancer when she translates Schwalbe:
156	-->'''Dusk Dancer:''' She said that she wants to get out of here with her… With her flank unscratched.
157	* LowerDeckEpisode: Focused on minor characters from ''Sleepless'', like Dr. Stable, Octavia, Minuette, Dusk Dancer, and Berry Punch.
158	* MagicAIsMagicA: the spell Minuette uses is similar to the one Twilight Sparkle used in [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E10SwarmoftheCentury Swarm of The Century]] and goes wrong in a similar way.
159	* MyGreatestFailure: According to Dr. Stable, Twilight Sparkle was never the same after she had to [[spoiler: kill Berry Punch]].
160	* NothingIsScarier: We never get to see [[spoiler: the monster that possessed Berry]].
161	* OffTheWagon: Berry Punch, since she landed in prison.
162	* RelationshipUpgrade: Three years after the events of ‘’Sleepless’’, Octavia and Dr. Stable are married.
163	* PurpleProse: In a shout out to H.P. Lovecraft, the narrator starts to use adjectives such as “abysmal”, “otherworldly”, “ominous”, or “excruciating”.
164	* ShoutOut: Many to the H.P. Lovecraft’s stories, most notably ‘’Re-animator’’ (Berry Punch’s behaviour) and ‘’The Case of Charles Dexter Ward’’ (underground laboratory). The [[spoiler: EldritchAbomination]] in the end is based on the monster from Andrey Dyakov's ''Metro 2033'' expanded universe novel ''Towards The Light''.
165	* SicklyGreenGlow: Berry Punch when the party meets her in the caves.
166	* SuperStrength: Berry Punch after the spell is cast on her.
167	* TomeOfEldritchLore: Found in the caves by the search party. Even Twilight Sparkle didn’t want to hold it for long.
168
169	[[/folder]]
170
171	[[folder:Elektrichka]]
172	%%* TheCameo: Babs Seed and her gang, Coco Pommel, and Grace Manewitz.
173	%%* InnerMonologue: the way the story is written.
174	* {{Interquel}}: According to WordOfGod, the story is set few days before ''Manehattan Blues''.
175	%%* TheNicknamer: The narrator of the story.
176
177	[[/folder]]
178
179	[[folder:Manehattan Blues]]
180
181	* AccidentalMurder: Poor [[spoiler: Golden Sunset]]. Babs’ automatic reply to being attacked is to stab the attacker with a knife, making her prone to such situations.
182	* [[ActionFilmQuietDramaScene Action Fic, Quiet Drama Scene]]: Beginning of chapter 10.
183	* AdultsAreUseless: Babs’ parents don’t really care what Babs is doing for entire ''weeks'' as long as she brings money home.
184	%%* AllMenArePerverts: Nightcap says it almost word by word.
185	%%* AntiHero: Babs. Borderlines with VillainProtagonist.
186	* ArmorPiercingQuestion: Nightcap asks one at the end of chapter 10:
187	-->Ms. Seed… How well do ya know Babs?
188	* ArsonMurderAndJaywalking: From chapter 3:
189	-->Babs was running through the crowd, bumping into scared tourists, beggars, prostitutes, insane prophets and street musicians.
190	** During the foreplay in chapter 8, Nightcap calls Babs “a slut”, “a thief”, and “a dirty murderer”. Then she adds “and a fat one”.
191	* ArtisticLicenceGunSafety: Babs aims a loaded gun at Lightning Dust. Though she gets chewed for that.
192	* AssholeVictim: [[spoiler: Golden Sunset]] and [[spoiler: White Dove]], if we interpret her [[spoiler: killing Raspberry]] as crossing the MoralEventHorizon.
193	* TheBigRottenApple: Where streets are ruled by gangs of teenagers.
194	* BilingualBonus: Raz’s full name is Razgovor, which means “conversation” in Russian.
195	* BookEnds: In both the first chapter and the epilogue the gangs are compared to cancer; Also, both end with Babs muttering threats to Manehattan.
196	* BreakTheCutie: Babs isn’t exactly a cutie, but still, at the end of chapter [[spoiler: 9]] she’s utterly broken.
197	%%* BrooklynRage: Babs Seed.
198	* BubblegumPopping: Babs does that from time to time.
199	* CallBack: Chapter 2 is full of call backs to ''Sleepless''. We also learn that Diamond Tiara was nicknamed “The Sleepless Killer” by the press and Neon Lights became a drug addict as a result of [[spoiler: Vinyl’s death]].
200	** It turns out Berry Punch became known as Canterlot Vampire.
201	** Apple Bloom had violent headaches after she was nearly killed by Diamond Tiara.
202	** In ''Sleepless'', Sunshine Rainbows mentions that she owns an autographed photo of Vinyl Scratch. Seven years later, the photo is still on her wall.
203	* CallingYourBathroomBreaks:
204	-->'''Babs:''' I’m too tired and too drunk to give a fuck about ideology. I’m gonna just take a leak and go to sleep. Tomorrow will be a busy day.
205	* TheCameo: Diamond Tiara’s roommate from ''Sleepless'', Sunshine Rainbows, makes another appearance when she [[spoiler: helps Babs get rid of the bodies of griffons she’d killed]].
206	* CampStraight: Babs thinks Rumble is gay, since he doesn’t drink and spends too much time taking care of his appearance. It turns out he’s Scootaloo’s coltfriend.
207	* CanonImmigrant: Bacio della Morte, a gangster from Las Pegasus, who first appeared in Samey90’s story ''Way To Go, Minuette, Way To Go!''.
208	* TheCavalryArrivesLate: When Babs and co. come to save White Dove [[spoiler: it turns out she’s been already raped to death]].
209	* ChekhovsGunman: Grace Manewitz is mentioned as Coco’s friends in the first chapter. In the penultimate chapter she’s revealed to be the prosecutor’s secretary.
210	* ClusterFBomb: Babs when she’s angry. Other characters also lapse into this from time to time.
211	* CoolAndUnusualPunishment: Babs gets a little flowery from time to time:
212	-->'''Babs:''' I’ll stick that cunt’s horn into her ass! While still attached to the forehead!
213	** From chapter 6:
214	-->'''Babs:''' Get lost, or ya’ll carry your balls to a hospital in a cardboard box…
215	* CountryMatters: Pop-ups in dialogues from time to time.
216	* DarkerAndEdgier: The only fic in the series rated mature.
217	* DeadManWriting: Lightning Dust’s recorded message, though her fate isn’t explained.
218	* DeadpanSnarker: Babs, Cracker, and Raz, in the rare moments when he actually speaks.
219	* DrowningMySorrows: Babs at the beginning of chapter 4. With Raspberry watching.
220	* EarlyBirdCameo: Lightning Dust first appears in chapter 3, but it’s not until chapter 7 when she starts to play a major role.
221	** [[spoiler: Nightcap’s letter to Babs]] appears in the coverart.
222	* EvenEvilHasStandards: Babs prefers mugging to prostitution, since it’s “more honest”.
223	* ExactWords: Lightning Dust says to the mafia boss that she’ll help him avoid getting caught by the guards. [[spoiler: Then she kills him.]]
224	* EyeScream: Babs does this to [[spoiler: one of the griffons who raped White Dove]].
225	* FailedASpotCheck: Trenderhoof in chapter 6. He was too focused on interviewing Babs and Nightcap to notice that a shootout is about to start behind him.
226	* FictionalSport: Pegasi racing in chapter 6. Though it’s heavily based on motorcycle speedway.
227	* {{Foreshadowing}}: Babs’ reaction when White Dove proposes to steal the drugs from the mafia:
228	-->'''Babs:''' Are ya dumb? Didn’t ya hear him? [[spoiler: If ya want a dozen of dicks in your ass, ya may try. But don’t cry for help then…]]
229	** The guard mistaking Babs for a prostitute. Few chapters later…
230	** The Boss’ bodyguard’s line from chapter 3 “We’re not gonna hurt you… yet.” becomes much harsher after chapter 9.
231	** Hedgehog calling Nightcap “Babs’ new marefriend”.
232	* FriendWithBenefits: Babs and Nightcap after chapter 8. As Nightcap puts it:
233	-->I wouldn’t call it ‘love’. We hang out together, we fuck – that’s all.
234	* GenreShift: Yet another. This installment is stripped of horror elements, instead being a dark, brutal slice of life story.
235	* GoodCopBadCop: Hope is a good cop, Tricky Case is a bad cop.
236	* GoryDiscretionShot: The scene of Lightning Dust’s meeting with the mafia boss [[IncrediblyLamePun cuts]] as soon as she [[spoiler: cuts off his penis with a pair of shears]].
237	* GreyAndGrayMorality: Babs is a manipulative sociopath; the rest of the characters isn’t any better.
238	* HairTriggerTemper: Babs is extremely short-fused and ready to beat anyone who pisses her off.
239	* HeroicBSOD: Babs has one after [[spoiler: mercilessly slaying the griffons who raped White Dove]].
240	* HiddenDepths: Babs is actually quite good at maths and has photographic memory.
241	* HookerWithAHeartOfGold: Nightcap.
242	* HormoneAddledTeenager: Almost everyone. Lightning Dust lampshades this at some point.
243	* HypocriticalHumor: Babs laughs at Rumble, calling him a faggot at least a couple of times, while she’s bisexual herself.
244	* ImmodestOrgasm: Babs fakes orgasms to make Jet Set finish quicker. It’s, however, interrupted by her breakdown when she remembers [[spoiler: killing Golden Sunset and kidnapping Raspberry]].
245	* IndyPloy: Lightning Dust has to make a plan to save Babs practically on a spot. [[spoiler: It involves killing a mafia boss and taking a blame for killing the griffons]].
246	-->I think I have a plan. It’s crazy and it’ll send us all up a shit creek without a paddle, but it’s the best thing I could come up with… Listen to me carefully…
247	* INeverSaidItWasPoison: Babs is prone to falling for that trick.
248	** From chapter 9:
249	-->'''Guard:''' Do you know that her father also recognised one of her friends as the guy who killed Golden Sunset? His name is Cracker or something like that…
250	-->'''Babs:''' I don’t know him.
251	-->'''Guard:''' Strange, because judging by his talks with other inmates he knows you…
252	-->'''Babs:''' He’s a pervert, he talk bullsh–
253	-->'''Guard:''' So you know him?
254	* InterplayOfSexAndViolence: [[spoiler: the sex scene between Babs and Nightcap.]]
255	* IntimatePsychotherapy: Babs recovers from her HeroicBSOD after [[spoiler: killing the griiffons]] when [[spoiler: she has sex with Nightcap]].
256	* IntroOnlyPointOfView: The first chapter starts from the perspective of Coco Pommel, who’s later mugged by Babs and her companions.
257	%%* {{Jerkass}}: Babs.
258	* ManipulativeBastard: Babs in chapter 5, when she tricks Jet Set into letting her stay with him for night so she can steal his wallet. Not that [[AssholeVictim the guy who hires underage prostitutes]] [[GreyAndGrayMorality is any better.]]
259	%%* MeaningfulName: Hope.
260	* MoodWhiplash: Chapter 9. Babs and Nightcap talk about their relationship, they part, Babs reads some bizarre graffiti on her way home, and then [[spoiler: she’s suddenly abducted and raped by the mafia boss.]]
261	* MustHaveNicotine: Babs smokes from time to time but when she’s stressed, she becomes a chainsmoker.
262	** She smokes four cigarettes in a quick succession in chapter 3, and only stops because she runs out of them.
263	* NaiveNewcomer: White Dove.
264	* TheNicknamer: The Big Guy calls Babs and her friends “filly scouts”.
265	* NoHoldsBarredBeatdown: Babs gives one to White Dove when she admits that she’d [[spoiler: killed Raspberry]].
266	* NoodleIncident: Babs tells a story of a mafia client, who kidnapped a filly who was delivering drugs to him. When asked what happened to him, she says “the usual”.
267	* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname: the mafia boss, aka The Big Guy. [[spoiler: his real name is Caballo Estrangulador]].
268	* OOCIsSeriousBusiness: When Raz starts to talk it’s when [[spoiler: Cracker gets caught and White Dove burns down a warehouse with Raspberry inside.]]
269	* OutWithABang: [[spoiler: The mafia boss, killed by Lightning Dust during a BDSM session]].
270	* PoliceAreUseless: Downplayed. Some of them are corrupted, some just don’t care, but from time to time they can catch someone.
271	* PrecisionFStrike: Raz’s first (and only) words in chapter 1 are “Fuck it.”
272	* TheQuietOne: Raz.
273	* RapeAsDrama: [[spoiler: White Dove and, later, Babs]].
274	* ReliablyUnreliableGuns: the submachine Babs is given is a cheap piece of junk that can explode at any moment.
275	* SexIsViolence: Babs and Nightcap’s foreplay includes beating the crap out of each other.
276	* SherlockScan: Babs does one in chapter 3, to evaluate the value of their future victims’ clothes.
277	** She does it again in chapter 5, before the fight with Hedgehog and White Dove.
278	* ShoutOut: Babs likes classical music, similarly to Alex from Literature/AClockworkOrange.
279	** Chapter 3 is called [[Music/FiftyCent Get Rich or Die Tryin’]].
280	** [[Fanfic/FalloutEquestria “It’s a bomb! The zebras attacked!”]].
281	** [[Film/ForrestGump This filly is like a box of chocolates… You never know what you’re gonna get.]]
282	* SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism: the whole fic, just like the rest of the series, is rather on cynical side of the scale; the conversation between the gang members in the first chapter reveals Hedgehog as TheIdealist and Cracker as TheCynic.
283	* TheTeetotaler: Rumble. Technically, all characters are underaged, but Babs drinks and smokes anyway.
284	* ThreeChordsAndTheTruth: Hedgehog’s song.
285	* TooDumbToLive: Seriously, White Dove? Stealing a wallet from the guy who buys drugs from you?
286	* TraumaCongaLine: Poor Babs. Over the course of the fic, she [[spoiler: accidentally stabs someone, leaves her friends, finds White Dove’s body after she’d been raped to death, shoots the rapists, is raped herself, and then is arrested and put in a boot camp]].
287	* UncleanlinessIsNextToUngodliness: Hedgehog. It’s mentioned several times that he [[{{Squick}} doesn’t bathe even when he has sex with Babs]].
288	* UnspokenPlanGuarantee: In chapter 10, Babs revises whole her plan in her head first. In contrast, Lightning Dust tells Nightcap only about her role in her plan. Guess which plan succeeds...
289	* UnstoppableRage: Babs after she discovers [[spoiler: that White Dove was killed]].
290	* WeHaveReserves: The Big Guy in chapter 9 yells that his ‘filly scouts’ are disposable.
291	* WhatIf: Nightcap’s backstory is basically “What if [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E8RarityTakesManehattan Coco Pommel]] didn’t find a job in the fashion industry?”
292	* WideEyedIdealist: White Dove. Also Hedgehog, to some extent.
293	* WretchedHive: Manehattan.
294	-->Now, she was right in the middle of it; a labyrinth of narrow paths surrounding blocks of cheap, small flats towering over Coco. There was nopony around, but she thanked Celestia for that; seeing the grim, emaciated ponies looking at her with strange sparks in their hungry eyes would be even worse.
295	* WrongSideOfTheTracks: Babs’ neighbourhood.
296	-->'''Crazy pony on the subway:''' There will be the day when the sister will turn against the sister! A ponykind will drown in the blood of their siblings, parents and neighbours! A pony will kill another pony…
297	-->'''Babs:''' Sounds like every weekend in my neighbourhood.
298	[[/folder]]
299
300	[[folder:Children of Equestria]]
301
302	* AbusiveParents: Carnation’s father.
303	* AlcoholInducedStupidity: Cherry Berry. [[spoiler:Partially the reason of her death.]]
304	* ApologisesALot: Diamond Tiara. Lampshaded by Silver Spoon in chapter 3.
305	* TheAtoner: Diamond Tiara.
306	* AutopsySnackTime: Scootaloo during the autopsy in the police academy.
307	* BabiesEverAfter: Nightcap and Raz.
308	* BlatantLies: Babs’ promises to improve.
309	* BrickJoke: Back in ''Sleepless’’, Sapphire Shores was mentioned as a suspect after [[spoiler: Vinyl]] was beaten. After [[spoiler:Featherweight is murdered]], she’s again considered a suspect.
310	** Another example from chapter 4: “The Sleepless Killer Will Be Back” graffiti from ‘’Manehattan Blues’’ was updated to ‘’The Sleepless Killer Is Back”.
311	* CallBack: Scootaloo trains to be a Royal Guard, just like she planned in ‘’Manehattan Blues’’.
312	* CaptainObvious: Diamond Tiara thinks that about hallucination!Silver Spoon. Justified, since Silver is a part of her mind, so she doesn’t know anything except of things Diamond knows herself.
313	* ChekhovsSkill: the situation Archer trains with Apple Bloom, snowpony, and a nerf crossbow in chapter 10 comes in handy later.
314	* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: Scootaloo’s cousin, Archer.
315	* ConnectedAllAlong: It turns out [[spoiler: Gilda was among the griffons who raped and killed White Dove.]] Hardly surprising, knowing the author's appeal to ContinuityPorn.
316	* CrapsackWorld: Manehattan, even more than in the previous installment.
317	* CreepyChild: Silver Spoon, especially since she [[spoiler: sometimes changes into Curtain Call]].
318	* DeadGuyJunior: Nightcap and Raz’s daughter, [[spoiler: Vinyl]].
319	* DeathByChildbirth: Carnation’s mother.
320	* DontYouDarePityMe: After being interrogated by the guards, Diamond Tiara snaps while talking to Scootaloo.
321	--> '''Diamond Tiara:''' And those who don’t see me as a murderer, constantly remind me how weak I am! For you, I’m either a killer, or a sick pony! Y-you speak to me as if I had cancer… No bad news... I live in a glass bubble filled with compassion…
322	--> '''Scootaloo:''' Chill out, Diamond… It’s just because of Donut… Rethink it when you’re calmer. Everything will be okay…
323	--> '''Diamond Tiara:''' ’Everything will be okay’?! You’re doing this again!
324	* DopeSlap: Old Celly, constantly. Her usual victim is Carnation.
325	* DoubleEntendre: Rumble talking about Apple Bloom letting Diamond Tiara [[UnusualEuphemism “taste her cider”]].
326	* DoubleTap: [[spoiler: Babs attempts that on Jet Set. She fails miserably, but still kills him.]]
327	* DrowningMySorrows: Babs after an argument with her sister.
328	* ExcrementStatement: Carnation does that to her abusive father after Babs throws him down the flight of stairs. It shocks even Babs.
329	* EveryScarHasAStory: Minuette likes to talk about the scars she'd acquired in ''Thirsty''.
330	* GenkiGirl: Archer.
331	* GoingColdTurkey: That’s how Babs quit smoking between ''Manehattan Blues'' and this story.
332	* GunNut: Archer. Or, more exactly, gun, crossbow, and bow nut.
333	* HearingVoices: Of insane variety. However, thanks to her medicines, Diamond knows that they aren’t real.
334	* IdiosyncraticEpisodeNaming: Each chapter’s name uses (possessive pronoun)(noun) scheme, for example ''Her Issues, My Reflection, Our Addictions'', and so on.
335	* ImStandingRightHere: this exchange from chapter 5:
336	-->'''Scootaloo:''' Sorry, Diamond. Archer is sometimes a bit too direct.
337	-->'''Archer:''' I’m still here, cousin…
338	* InsistentTerminology: Silver Spoon calls Filthy Rich “our dad” since she learns that he got together with her mother. Diamond Tiara corrects her to “my dad”.
339	** Archer gets mad when Diamond Tiara calls a bolt “an arrow”.
340	* LighterAndSofter: In comparison to ''Manehattan Blues'', though it’s also more of a slice of life than ''Sleepless''.
341	* LethalChef: Archer apparently finds cooking recipes in a toxicology textbook.
342	* LethallyStupid: Archer. During her introduction, she accidentally shoots the door with a crossbow, barely avoiding IJustShotMarvinInTheFace. Judging by the dents, it’s not the first time.
343	* MaternalDeathBlameTheChild: Carnation’s father regularly beats her for that.
344	* NarrativeProfanityFilter: Used in the first chapter, when Babs intentionally provokes Cherry Berry. Narration mentions that Cherry unleashed a stream of abuse to which Babs says that she’ll surely tell her mother what Cherry thinks about her.
345	* TheNicknamer: Babs nicknames Rumble “Mr. Quick Finish”, and Button Mash “Mr. Dorky Loser”.
346	* ObfuscatingStupidity: Archer's ''modus operandi'', especially visible when she interrogates Button Mash. Also, how [[spoiler: Lightning Dust]] hides her identity.
347	* OopNorth: Old Celly speaks with that accent.
348	* {{Paparazzi}}: Featherweight.
349	* PlayingTheVictimCard: Babs uses it when she’s accused of something.
350	--> “So, that’s what it’s about?” Babs asked, approaching her sister. “I knew it… Ya’re afraid that a sister like me would ruin your oh-so-perfect reputation?! I’d like to remind ya that ya taught me to steal in shops!”
351	* PregnantBadass: Octavia.
352	* PunchAWall: A variant of. After [[spoiler: she finds Carnation’s body]], Babs trashes the bathroom stall door.
353	* PungeonMaster: Octavia, according to Minuette and Sweetie Belle. Also, Scootaloo in chapter 2.
354	* RageAgainstTheReflection: Diamond Tiara does that when she sees Curtain Call in the mirror.
355	* [[spoiler: RapeAsBackstory]]: Babs. She reminds other characters about this when they accuse her of something, effectively PlayingTheVictimCard.
356	* ReformedButRejected: Diamond Tiara. Also, Babs Seed [[spoiler: though she’s not quite reformed]].
357	* ReliablyUnreliableGuns: ''Souvenir from Manehattan''.
358	* RevengeBeforeReason: Babs Seed. Again. Also, Cherry Berry.
359	* RunAwayHideAway: Various magazines and barns Babs and Diamond Tiara hide [[spoiler: after Babs kills Cherry Berry.]]
360	* SelfDeprecation: Since ''Thirsty'' is also known in-universe, several characters waste no chance to mock it.
361	* ShipLevel: On the run, [[spoiler: Diamond and Babs]] hide in a steamboat.
362	* [[spoiler: ShootTheShaggyDog]]: During her visit to Manehattan Babs helps an underaged prostitute called Carnation: she beats her abusive father and gives her some money [[spoiler: Later she finds Carnation dead after she overdosed heroin]].
363	* ShoutOut:
364	** [[Film/MontyPythonAndTheHolyGrail “So, how’s Canterlot, Scootaloo?” Apple Bloom asked. “And Ah swear, if ya say that it’s a silly place, I’m gonna throw that cider at ya…”]]
365	** At some point Button Mash refers to Babs’ deeds as “her [[Fanfic/PastSins past sins]]”.
366	** Babs’ “Missed me?” at the end of chapter 3 resembles [[Series/{{Sherlock}} Moriarty]].
367	** Babs’ fellow inmate called [[Literature/CatsCradle Ice Nine]]. According to WordOfGod, she had three names, all derived from [[Creator/KurtVonnegut Kurt Vonnegut’s]] novels.
368	* SplitPersonalityTakeover: Happens to [[spoiler: Diamond Tiara]] when she's off her meds.
369	* TheTeetotaler: Diamond Tiara decides to become one, since alcohol triggers her psychotic attacks.
370	* TimeSkip: About a month passes between chapter 4 and 5.
371	* VomitingCop: Played with. After [[spoiler: Featherweight]] is murdered, Scootaloo braces herself before entering the crime scene in order to not be one.
372	* YourApprovalFillsMeWithShame: Diamond Tiara is disgusted when she finds out that Archer is her fan.

Context Fanfic / Sleepless