diff --git a/hawk/lib/mod-hawk.c b/hawk/lib/mod-hawk.c
index 540181f6..f1cddf21 100644
--- a/hawk/lib/mod-hawk.c
+++ b/hawk/lib/mod-hawk.c
@@ -27,8 +27,13 @@
 #include "mod-hawk.h"
 #include "hawk-prv.h"
 
+/*
+ * function abc(a, b, c) { return a + b + c; }
+ * BEGIN { print hawk::call("abc", 10, 20, 30); }
+ */
 struct pafs_t
 {
+	hawk_fun_t* fun;
 	hawk_oow_t stack_base;
 	hawk_oow_t start_index;
 	hawk_oow_t end_index;
@@ -37,7 +42,7 @@ struct pafs_t
 static hawk_oow_t push_args_from_stack (hawk_rtx_t* rtx, hawk_nde_fncall_t* call, void* data)
 {
 	struct pafs_t* pasf = (struct pafs_t*)data;
-	hawk_oow_t org_stack_base, i;
+	hawk_oow_t org_stack_base, spec_len, i, j;
 	hawk_val_t* v;
 
 	if (HAWK_RTX_STACK_AVAIL(rtx) < pasf->end_index - pasf->start_index + 1)
@@ -46,13 +51,21 @@ static hawk_oow_t push_args_from_stack (hawk_rtx_t* rtx, hawk_nde_fncall_t* call
 		return (hawk_oow_t)-1;
 	}
 
+	spec_len = pasf->fun->argspec? hawk_count_oocstr(pasf->fun->argspec): 0;
+	
 	org_stack_base = rtx->stack_base;
-	for (i = pasf->start_index; i <= pasf->end_index; i++) 
+	for (i = pasf->start_index, j = 0; i <= pasf->end_index; i++, j++) 
 	{
 		rtx->stack_base = pasf->stack_base;
 		v = HAWK_RTX_STACK_ARG(rtx, i);
 		rtx->stack_base = org_stack_base;
 
+		if (j < spec_len && pasf->fun->argspec[j] == 'r' && HAWK_RTX_GETVALTYPE(rtx, v) != HAWK_VAL_REF)
+		{
+			hawk_rtx_seterrnum (rtx, &call->loc, HAWK_ENOTREF);
+			return (hawk_oow_t)-1;
+		}
+
 		HAWK_RTX_STACK_PUSH (rtx, v);
 		hawk_rtx_refupval (rtx, v);
 	}
@@ -66,45 +79,36 @@ static int fnc_call (hawk_rtx_t* rtx, const hawk_fnc_info_t* fi)
 	hawk_oow_t nargs;
 	hawk_nde_fncall_t call;
 	struct pafs_t pafs;
-	hawk_val_t* v, * a0;
-	int rx = -1;
+	hawk_val_t* v;
 
 	/* this function is similar to hawk_rtx_callfun() but it is more simplified */
 
-	a0 = hawk_rtx_getarg(rtx, 0);
-
-	fun = hawk_rtx_valtofun(rtx, hawk_rtx_getarg(rtx, 1));
-	if (!fun) goto done;
+	fun = hawk_rtx_valtofun(rtx, hawk_rtx_getarg(rtx, 0));
+	if (!fun) return -1; /* hard failure */
 
 	nargs = hawk_rtx_getnargs(rtx);
-	if (nargs - 2 > fun->nargs)
+	if (nargs - 1 > fun->nargs)
 	{
-		/*hawk_rtx_seterrnum (rtx, HAWK_NULL, HAWK_EARGTM);
-		return HAWK_NULL;*/
-		goto done;
+		hawk_rtx_seterrnum (rtx, HAWK_NULL, HAWK_EARGTM);
+		return -1; /* hard failure */
 	}
 
 	HAWK_MEMSET (&call, 0, HAWK_SIZEOF(call));
 	call.type = HAWK_NDE_FNCALL_FUN;
 	call.u.fun.name = fun->name;
-	call.nargs = nargs - 2;
+	call.nargs = nargs - 1;
 	/* keep HAWK_NULL in call.args so that hawk_rtx_evalcall() knows it's a fake call structure */
-	call.arg_base = rtx->stack_base + 6; /* 6 = 4(stack frame prologue) + 2(the first two arguments to hawk::call()) */
+	call.arg_base = rtx->stack_base + 5; /* 5 = 4(stack frame prologue) + 1(the first argument to hawk::call()) */
 
+	pafs.fun = fun;
 	pafs.stack_base = rtx->stack_base;
-	pafs.start_index = 2;
+	pafs.start_index = 1;
 	pafs.end_index = nargs - 1;
 
 	v = hawk_rtx_evalcall(rtx, &call, fun, push_args_from_stack, (void*)&pafs, HAWK_NULL, HAWK_NULL);
-	if (HAWK_LIKELY(v))
-	{
-		hawk_rtx_refupval (rtx, v);
-		rx = hawk_rtx_setrefval(rtx, (hawk_val_ref_t*)a0, v);
-		hawk_rtx_refdownval (rtx, v);
-	}
+	if (HAWK_UNLIKELY(!v)) return -1; /* hard failure */
 
-done:
-	hawk_rtx_setretval (rtx, hawk_rtx_makeintval(rtx, rx));
+	hawk_rtx_setretval (rtx, v);
 	return 0;
 }
 
@@ -188,7 +192,7 @@ struct inttab_t
 static fnctab_t fnctab[] =
 {
 	/* keep this table sorted for binary search in query(). */
-	{ HAWK_T("call"),             { { 2, A_MAX, HAWK_T("rvR") },  fnc_call,                  0 } },
+	{ HAWK_T("call"),             { { 1, A_MAX, HAWK_T("vR")  },  fnc_call,                  0 } },
 	{ HAWK_T("gc"),               { { 0, 1,     HAWK_NULL     },  fnc_gc,                    0 } },
 	{ HAWK_T("gc_get_threshold"), { { 1, 1,     HAWK_NULL     },  fnc_gc_get_threshold,      0 } },
 	{ HAWK_T("gc_set_threshold"), { { 2, 2,     HAWK_NULL     },  fnc_gc_set_threshold,      0 } }
diff --git a/hawk/lib/parse.c b/hawk/lib/parse.c
index 68cbf4d2..79c9e189 100644
--- a/hawk/lib/parse.c
+++ b/hawk/lib/parse.c
@@ -1454,14 +1454,13 @@ static hawk_nde_t* parse_function (hawk_t* awk)
 				nargs = HAWK_ARR_SIZE(awk->parse.params);
 				if (nargs >= argspeccapa)
 				{
-					hawk_oow_t i, newcapa = HAWK_ALIGN_POW2(nargs + 1, 64);
+					hawk_oow_t i, newcapa = HAWK_ALIGN_POW2(nargs + 2, 64);
 					argspec = hawk_reallocmem(awk, argspec, newcapa * HAWK_SIZEOF(*argspec));
 					if (!argspec) goto oops;
 					for (i = argspeccapa; i < newcapa; i++) argspec[i] = HAWK_T(' ');
 					argspeccapa = newcapa;
 				}
 				argspec[nargs] = 'r';
-				argspec[nargs + 1] = '\0';
 				if (get_token(awk) <= -1) goto oops;
 			}
 
@@ -1522,6 +1521,7 @@ static hawk_nde_t* parse_function (hawk_t* awk)
 			while (MATCH(awk,TOK_NEWLINE));
 		}
 
+		if (argspec) argspec[nargs + 1] = '\0';
 		if (get_token(awk) <= -1) goto oops;
 	}
 
diff --git a/hawk/lib/run.c b/hawk/lib/run.c
index 3f973521..7a628322 100644
--- a/hawk/lib/run.c
+++ b/hawk/lib/run.c
@@ -6124,27 +6124,44 @@ hawk_val_t* hawk_rtx_evalcall (
 				{
 					hawk_val_t** ref;
 					hawk_val_ref_t refv;
+					hawk_val_t* av;
 					int r;
 
-					/* if an argument passed is a local variable or a parameter to the previous caller,
-					 * the argument node information stored is relative to the previous stack frame.
-					 * i revert rtx->stack_base to the previous stack frame base before calling 
-					 * get_reference() and restors it back to the current base. this tactic
-					 * is very ugly because the assumptions for this is depecallnt on get_reference()
-					 * implementation */
-					rtx->stack_base = prev_stack_base; /* UGLY */
-					r = get_reference(rtx, p, &ref);
-					rtx->stack_base = cur_stack_base; /* UGLY */
-
-					/* if argspec is 'r', get_reference() must succeed all the time.
-					 * if argspec is 'R', it may fail. if it happens, don't copy the value */
-					if (HAWK_LIKELY(r >= 0))
+					av = HAWK_RTX_STACK_ARG(rtx, i);
+					if (HAWK_RTX_GETVALTYPE(rtx, av) == HAWK_VAL_REF)
 					{
-						HAWK_RTX_INIT_REF_VAL (&refv, p->type - HAWK_NDE_NAMED, ref, 9); /* initialize a fake reference variable. 9 chosen randomly */
-						if (HAWK_UNLIKELY(hawk_rtx_setrefval(rtx, &refv, HAWK_RTX_STACK_ARG(rtx, i)) <= -1)) 
+						/* the argument still has the reference type. 
+						 * this means, the argument has not been set. 
+						 * 
+						 *   function f1(&a, &b) { b = 20 } 
+						 * 
+						 * since a is not set in f1, the value for a is still the pushed value which is a reference
+						 */
+
+						/* ---- DO NOTHING ---- */
+					}
+					else
+					{
+						/* if an argument passed is a local variable or a parameter to the previous caller,
+						 * the argument node information stored is relative to the previous stack frame.
+						 * i revert rtx->stack_base to the previous stack frame base before calling 
+						 * get_reference() and restors it back to the current base. this tactic
+						 * is very ugly because the assumptions for this is depecallnt on get_reference()
+						 * implementation */
+						rtx->stack_base = prev_stack_base; /* UGLY */
+						r = get_reference(rtx, p, &ref);
+						rtx->stack_base = cur_stack_base; /* UGLY */
+
+						/* if argspec is 'r', get_reference() must succeed all the time.
+						 * if argspec is 'R', it may fail. if it happens, don't copy the value */
+						if (HAWK_LIKELY(r >= 0))
 						{
-							n = -1;
-							ADJERR_LOC (rtx, &call->loc);
+							HAWK_RTX_INIT_REF_VAL (&refv, p->type - HAWK_NDE_NAMED, ref, 9); /* initialize a fake reference variable. 9 chosen randomly */
+							if (HAWK_UNLIKELY(hawk_rtx_setrefval(rtx, &refv, av) <= -1)) 
+							{
+								n = -1;
+								ADJERR_LOC (rtx, &call->loc);
+							}
 						}
 					}
 				}
@@ -6157,8 +6174,8 @@ hawk_val_t* hawk_rtx_evalcall (
 		{
 			/*
 			 *  function f1(a,&b) { b *= 20; }
-			 *  BEGIN { q = 4; hawk::call(r, "f1", 20, q); print q; 
-* }
+			 *  BEGIN { q = 4; hawk::call(r, "f1", 20, q); print q; }
+			 *
 			 * the fourth argument to hawk::call() must map to the second argument to f1().
 			 * hawk::call() accepts the third to the last arguments as reference if possible.
 			 * this function attempts to copy back the pass-by-reference values to 
@@ -6171,15 +6188,23 @@ hawk_val_t* hawk_rtx_evalcall (
 			{
 				if (n >= 0 && (fun->argspec[i] == 'r' || fun->argspec[i] == 'R'))
 				{
-					hawk_val_t* v;
+					hawk_val_t* v, * av;
 
-					v = rtx->stack[call->arg_base + i]; /* UGLY */
-					if (HAWK_RTX_GETVALTYPE(rtx, v) == HAWK_VAL_REF)
+					av = HAWK_RTX_STACK_ARG(rtx, i);
+					if (HAWK_RTX_GETVALTYPE(rtx, av) == HAWK_VAL_REF)
 					{
-						if (HAWK_UNLIKELY(hawk_rtx_setrefval(rtx, (hawk_val_ref_t*)v, HAWK_RTX_STACK_ARG(rtx, i)) <= -1)) 
+						/* ---- DO NOTHING ---- */
+					}
+					else
+					{
+						v = rtx->stack[call->arg_base + i]; /* UGLY */
+						if (HAWK_RTX_GETVALTYPE(rtx, v) == HAWK_VAL_REF)
 						{
-							n = -1;
-							ADJERR_LOC (rtx, &call->loc);
+							if (HAWK_UNLIKELY(hawk_rtx_setrefval(rtx, (hawk_val_ref_t*)v, av) <= -1)) 
+							{
+								n = -1;
+								ADJERR_LOC (rtx, &call->loc);
+							}
 						}
 					}
 				}
diff --git a/hawk/lib/val.c b/hawk/lib/val.c
index f04fe4c9..ca35f6d4 100644
--- a/hawk/lib/val.c
+++ b/hawk/lib/val.c
@@ -2465,7 +2465,7 @@ hawk_val_t* hawk_rtx_getrefval (hawk_rtx_t* rtx, hawk_val_ref_t* ref)
 
 int hawk_rtx_setrefval (hawk_rtx_t* rtx, hawk_val_ref_t* ref, hawk_val_t* val)
 {
-	hawk_val_type_t vtype = HAWK_RTX_GETVALTYPE (rtx, val);
+	hawk_val_type_t vtype = HAWK_RTX_GETVALTYPE(rtx, val);
 
 	if (vtype == HAWK_VAL_REX || vtype == HAWK_VAL_REF)
 	{