I do keep coming back to the thought that there is no reason to have stopped to see Astrid before going to Aeor if the point wasn't to try to recruit her for chaperone duties. It doesn't exactly seem like she's with the Vanguard or she wouldn't be hiding in a smut shop in Zadash.

Please, Astrid, come to Aeor with us. You can take potshots at your ex's new boyfriend the whole time. And he can't even say shit about it, because he's the one who invited you.