Soukouyant
In short: A figure in Caribbean storytelling who can shed her skin and travel at night in another form.
Character
How does it work in the tale?
The Dominica sources share the idea of night flight. In the La Plaine story a thing seen by daylight takes centre stage. The dress becomes the focus of a village rumour about a journey nobody saw.
What changes when a dress is found in daylight?
In Fontaine’s La Plaine account, a dress starts talk in the village about a journey at night. Seeing the dress and witnessing the journey associated with it are separate events. That distinction helps you follow what villagers see and what they tell each other.