Living in the Hotel Doorway: Fantasy

She went insane, we thought, when she started living in the doorway of the hotel. It was a fancy one, too, and we never could figure out why they let her stay there, her in her ragged coat, with her shopping cart that held the few things she kept, including the cat carrier that the stray she adopted slept in (she'd removed the door long ago so he could run if young punks decided to mess with her). It wasn't the front door, of course, but we figured even the side door of a fancy hotel would be policed. And yet, they let her stay. More than that. They brought her blankets in the coldest part of winter, and she often ate better than we did--the chef had a particular affection for her.

Inspiration: "Cemetary Polka" by Tom Waits
Story Potential: High.
Notes: Some sort of protection? Or an evolving urban dryad sort of thing? That could be fun to play with. ETA: See also http://penthius.livejournal.com/265882.html for another POV in the same kinda world.