Alison Strange is an Australian autistic woman who has been told from a young age that she was not suited for academic settings because of her Tourette's syndrome and her inability to pay attention to things that didn't interest her. Growing up, other children would target her for her differences, but the praise from her grandfather, whom she calls "granrob," allowed her to ignore how others judged her. Granrob, a history teacher, encouraged her interests, especially her interest in history.

Now that Alison is twenty years old, she asks Granrob to take her to the archival records of Kingswood to read the details of the convict ship muster, as Alison has been away from her convict ancestors for a while. Granrob agrees, and they plan to go.

Before they planned to go, Alison received a letter from the Australian Human Services, Centre Link, telling her that she owed more than 15,000 dollars in repayments for welfare. She begins to panic, and her Tourette's causes her to make high-pitched noises. Granrob came to calm her down, letting her know that real people often do not calculate those numbers, so it could be a mistake, and she should call them. She had been told to claim a disability pension but decided to work to make an "honest living." However, the small gift shop where she worked was closed down due to COVID-19.

Granrob encourages her to call them herself rather than have him call, as she needs to practice doing some things independently. She calls and is told that the number was not wrong and that she owed that much because she had gotten a job and hadn't told them. She also said she should get a loan to repay them and pay them back in installments. She resists, and Granrob even gets on the phone with them. Still, the call center agent insisted that she simply pay, and if there was any chance that there was a mistake, she could be refunded later on. Granrob thinks this is "cockeyed" and says they'll just go speak to the local federal member of parliament, Mr. Callopy.

Alison was upset, and these events ruined her weekend. But Alison's mother's boyfriend told her not to worry and that he would speak to Mr. Callopy as he knew him. Alison also finds out that this issue is happening to many other people and that the Unemployed Laborer's Union is organizing to help people, which slightly lifts her and Granrob's spirits.

Granrob reminds Alison of their planned trip to the archives, telling her they don't have to go if she's not up to it. But Alison still wants to, so they make the trip. Granrob had booked a spot in the reading room. They looked through the archives until they found their ancestor, John Strange, a criminal listed as someone who sold shoes. He had done a few months in jail for treason. She was surprised, as she had thought he had been in prison for stealing shoes. Granrob tells her that it's time to tell her the truth. He tells her of four other convicts.

Granrob tells her that in 1820 England, a group of revolutionaries planned to kill the cabinet at a dinner at a place called Grosvenor Square. Granrob tells Alison of all of the reasons they deserved the assassination, like starving the people. He tells her that John Strange had been trying to use explosives to kill the cabinet. However, John Strange was betrayed by an informer, so some revolutionaries were hung, and some were transported to Australia to live, which is why Granrob and Alison are Australian. Granrob explains that this was a hidden family secret for a long time to protect their family's reputation and social mobility in Australia.

Alison is cheered up by this story and feels inspired to write about her ancestors, and Granrob encourages her.

Colin came over, and Alison mentioned the meeting with Mr. Callopy and told him that she would like to speak to him herself. He offered to go with her, but she rejected the offer, insisting it was her problem.

Before she met with Callopy, she got a few calls from debt collectors about her debt, which made her feel like panicking. But she thought of her ancestors, and it emboldened her to speak to them without having an episode. She was surprised and pleased with her ability to handle these calls, and Granrob also expressed her pride.

Alison's meeting with Callopy arrives. Callopy asks if she is related to Rob Strange (Granrob), and she says yes. She shows him the debt letter, and he tells her it is likely correct. He says everyone says they owe nothing like Alison says. He dismisses her, which angers Alison. Alison's attitude angers Callopy, who accuses her of stealing from taxpayers and calls her grandfather a socialist for not voting for him.

Alison leaves and tells Granrob what happened, and Granrob calls Callopy a fascist. He tells her that she found a website called RoboHoldUp for people like Alison who had gotten debt notices like this. They wanted everyone's story, so Alison wrote hers down and sent it in. In the meantime, she goes to the Centrelink headquarters. She speaks to an agent explaining how the debt calculating robot had gotten her debt wrong, that it thought she had still been working because there needed clarification with what company owned who, so it was unclear if she collected benefits from a company. But the agent tells her she should pay the debt to save herself trouble, as they would keep coming for her. She speaks to another agent who tells her the same thing and that they only have her word that she didn't collect any benefits while unemployed. No matter how much Alison pushes back, the agent tells her that the government will not give up on the debt, so she should pay it. Alison protests with a sign so sincere that the news picks it up. She protests in front of the Centrelink, which attracts more protestors to join her. A journalist interviews her, and she tells them her story and resists telling them about her convict ancestor. She attracts more and more media attention and begins getting very involved and successfully organizing protests. Granrob comments on how Alison's way of protesting is so effective because her autism makes her so sincere and honest that people can't ignore what she says.

Alison speaks in Sydney to a large crowd and tells them of her convict ancestor who was not a thief.