I am starting to notice hints of fanservice here and there. Emma and Regina’s “our son” and Emma lightening the candle in 307 using the magic Regina taught her (which according to Tumblr is in every SQ fan fic EVER) and then in 308 them using their magic together to move the freaking moon feels like they are trying to reach out to one side of their fandom. Not saying SF OR CS are fanservice but I do wonder if A and E are still writing for themselves or now writing with their internet community placed more toward the front of their minds than normal.
I think stuff like Emma and Regina doing magic together fits perfectly in the story. They are both powerfully magical women, one dark, one light, who are also both Henry’s mothers, so having them join forces makes sense. SQ shippers can read into the “making magic together” stuff very easily, and if it gets them excited about the show then that’s great, but it still works on a non-romantic-SQ level as well, just as a plot point. Fire making lessons might be in every SQ fanfic ever, but that’s probably because Kitswitz decided to make fireballs Regina’s thing. Also, creating fire is a basic, elemental magic kinda thing, so it’d make sense for that to be Emma’s first magic lesson, both in fanfic, and in the actual show. Right after Regina got her SB magic back, she was testing it out by trying to light a candle, so I think it’s just a standard trick for beginners. So what I’m saying is, I’m sure they always intended to have Emma and Regina come together to use their magic, but the way the fandom has developed has just added another layer of interpretation to it, because that’s what fandom does.