Dana will go off the deep end by attempting to murder Mary in an attempt to “put her out of her misery”.
It ends with her being arrested or sent to a mental ward. She might even get her parental rights terminated.- Jossed. Todd files for divorce while Mary is on the train, and Dana ends up abandoning the Summers shortly before Mary’s return and will presumably never see Mary again (especially since Mary and Reagan no longer want anything to do with Dana).
Todd and Dana are going to divorce before Mary leaves the train.
Both of them can't stand each other anymore, they're in debt to multiple quack doctors, and Todd is on edge most of the time.
- or Todd divorced Dana after he saw her trying to kill Mary when she come back from the train. Dana attempted to murdered their youngest daughter is the last straw to him and he call the police on her and divorcing her for good.
- Chapter 14 reveals that Todd is considering divorcing Dana because she is un-remorseful about everything she’s done to Mary. However, he fears that Mary will blame herself for it or Dana will convince Mary that it’ll be her fault. In the next chapter, when he sees that Dana is still refusing to treat Mary better or seek therapy, Todd reluctantly accepts that he has no choice but to divorce her.
Confirmed as of chapter 16.
Something is going to happen to Mimi (Mary's stuffed animal)
At one point, Vic tries to sell Mimi to the black slugs. This might foreshadow something ominous happening (either Mimi gets destroyed in a tragic accident, Mimi comes to life BUT pulls a Heroic Sacrifice to save the group, or Nora cruelly destroys the plush).
- Chapter 12 reveals that Dana only bought Mimi to keep Mary quiet. In the following chapter, Mary leaves behind a hair ribbon to decorate a snowman because Reagan bought it for her after Dana cruelly refused. Maybe Mary will choose to leave Mimi behind, too, now that she remembers the bad memory behind how she got Mimi?
- Confirmed. Mary gives Mimi to Blanca as a parting gift when her exit portal opens, partially because she now knows the bad circumstances that got her Mimi in the first place and partially to help Blanca comfort any future child passengers she encounters.
- Nora might destroy her just to be a jerk. She has actively antagonized Mary before and is already cruel to younger children (implied to have done something bad to her younger brother).
Dana will be forced onto the train and realize how terrible of a mother she is
Either she'll beg for Mary's forgiveness after that, or we could get another Simon. Either way, everyone back home will be celebrating.- Furthermore, the prospect of Dana getting eaten by a Ghom will provide a lot of Catharsis Factor for those who particularly despise her.
- Jossed. Ultimately, Dana leaves her family yet still refuses to own up to how bad of a mother she was. But all three of the Summers and their friends are much happier without her around.
Nora theories
So Nora appears in chapter 13, after being foreshadowed in chapter one. How'd she end up on the train in the first place?- Supposedly, she claims her parents love her little brother more than her. However, Nora could be lying about it. Considering that her disappearance was reported on the news, somebody cares enough about her to report it.
- Her parents do care about her, as seen in the texts sent in chapter 16 and chapter 18's flashbacks. However it's implied she did something bad to her little brother (some sort of abuse).
- Chapter 15 reveals more about her: her boyfriend supposedly gifted her a pistol, she's extremely cynical and has drug problems.
- Since Nora has the Nazi symbols on the soles of her boots? She could be a member of the alt-right and ran away to avoid her family finding out.
- Chapter 16 reveals that Nora's boyfriend Xander is the source of much of Nora's worldview, and the text messages from Nora's mother imply that Xander is a bad influence on her.
- Chapter 18 reveals that Xander is a Nazi who recruited Nora and that they had drugs at the meetings.
- It’s not too late for Nora to have a Heel Realization: Perhaps if she sees her memories or learns that Xander is using her, she’ll fight to get off the Train and fix things with her family. I don’t see her getting off with Mary, but maybe she’ll be in a healthier place.
Dana herself is Neurodivergent, perhaps even Autistic, but hasn't been diagnosed.
There are several reasons why Dana being Autistic would make sense:- Autistic girls are disproportionately less likely to be formally diagnosed than boys, since those who are less obviously Autistic will often instinctively mask in order to fit in.
- Undiagnosed Autistic girls will often come across as tomboyish due to having gender-atypical interests (eg. Dana's interest in STEM that was mentioned in her backstory).
- Autism can be genetic, so it wouldn't be surprising if Mary inherited it from Dana’s side of the family.
- Dana's obsession with reputation, if it wasn't just a result of being emotionally abused by Irene, would match known Autistic tendencies for desiring order and control, and an aversion to humiliation felt by many Autistics.
- Dana being diagnosed with Autism after mistreating Mary for being Autistic would be a very satisfying form of Karma.
The final chapter will be a timeskip
After Mary gets off the train, the final chapter will be an epilogue that shows Mary as an adult and having successfully overcome her trauma. Things the timeskip might include:- Mary becoming a successful children's book author, having Greg collaborate as an illustrator (since his talent at art is highlighted in several chapters, and he makes an effort to make a nice card in Chapter 17.) The Infinity Train could appear as inspiration for the book series, along with the fairy story Mary worked on as a child.
- Mary being married to a loving husband and having multiple children (perhaps even being pregnant with another at the time of the epilogue), showing that Dana was completely wrong about Mary's adult life. There are several candidates for who this husband could be; Leo, her childhood friend, or Greg who shares interests in creavity and is making an effort to be a better kid, or an entirely new character.
- A "Goodbye forever" scene showing an elderly Dana alone and unloved in a nursing home, meeting an adult Mary for the last time (and Mary's kids for the only time), and Mary explaining who Dana is in unflattering terms.
- Reagan and Oliver could be the married couple while Mary is their cool aunt.
- Mary and Lianna becoming good friends, perhaps even collaborating on a story together inspired by manga.
- Confirmed, although the timeskip is much shorter. Six years pass after Mary returns from the Infinity Train, and she's now a high school student who submits a short story based on her adventures to an anthology book. While at Lianna's birthday party, Mary befriends Nora's brother Julius, and it's speculated the two might be developing feelings for each other. It’s mentioned that Mary has seen a therapist at Todd’s suggestion to help her overcome her trauma over everything Dana did to her. Reagan and Oliver are still together, but there’s no indication if they planned to get engaged or married anytime soon. And finally, Dana is still keeping her distance from Mary, while Mary herself also has disowned her as her mother.
