That Starlike Fairy ... (その 星のような妖精は ..., Sono Hoshi no Yōna Yōsei wa ...) is the ninth episode of the Aria anime and the ninth episode of the first season.
Summary[]
Aika and Alice tell Akari about Grandma Akino, once the best undines of Neo-Venezia and founder of Aria Company. When Aika complains she feels her training is in a rut, that she is not getting closer to her goal of becoming the best undine on Aqua, Alicia suggests the three trainees visit Grandma, now in retirement in the countryside.
When they arrive, Aika respectfully asks Grandma for her guidance. When Grandma asks for help with domestic chores, Aika interprets them as training tasks: that collecting chestnuts is an exercise in picking out customers in a crowd, that digging up sweet potatoes is an exercise in handling fragile baggage. In both cases, Alice (by being quietly efficient) and Akari (by enjoying something she could not do on Manhome) each gather more than Aika.
That night, when the girls go outside to admire the bright stars, Grandma tells them the secret to becoming a good undine is to enjoy every moment, and that if they have fun being in a gondola, she can teach them nothing. When they see shooting stars, the trainees make wishes that they become great undines.