diff --git a/client/commands/proofs/get.go b/client/commands/proofs/get.go
index 4edbd90b59..645aba47d5 100644
--- a/client/commands/proofs/get.go
+++ b/client/commands/proofs/get.go
@@ -12,59 +12,81 @@ import (
 	"github.com/tendermint/go-wire/data"
 	lc "github.com/tendermint/light-client"
 	"github.com/tendermint/light-client/proofs"
+	"github.com/tendermint/merkleeyes/iavl"
 	"github.com/tendermint/tendermint/rpc/client"
 
 	"github.com/tendermint/basecoin/client/commands"
 )
 
-// GetAndParseAppProof does most of the work of the query commands, but is quite
-// opinionated, so if you want more control, set up the items and call GetProof
+// Get does most of the work of the query commands, but is quite
+// opinionated, so if you want more control, set up the items and call Get
 // directly.  Notably, it always uses go-wire.ReadBinaryBytes to deserialize,
 // and Height and Node from standard flags.
 //
 // It will try to get the proof for the given key.  If it is successful,
 // it will return the proof and also unserialize proof.Data into the data
 // argument (so pass in a pointer to the appropriate struct)
-func GetAndParseAppProof(key []byte, data interface{}) (lc.Proof, error) {
-	height := GetHeight()
-	node := commands.GetNode()
-
-	prover := proofs.NewAppProver(node)
-
-	proof, err := GetProof(node, prover, key, height)
+func GetParsed(key []byte, data interface{}, prove bool) (uint64, error) {
+	bs, h, err := Get(key, prove)
 	if err != nil {
-		return proof, err
+		return 0, err
 	}
-
-	err = wire.ReadBinaryBytes(proof.Data(), data)
-	return proof, err
+	err = wire.ReadBinaryBytes(bs, data)
+	if err != nil {
+		return 0, err
+	}
+	return h, nil
 }
 
-// GetProof performs the get command directly from the proof (not from the CLI)
-func GetProof(node client.Client, prover lc.Prover, key []byte, height int) (proof lc.Proof, err error) {
-	proof, err = prover.Get(key, uint64(height))
+func Get(key []byte, prove bool) (data.Bytes, uint64, error) {
+	if !prove {
+		node := commands.GetNode()
+		resp, err := node.ABCIQuery("/key", key, false)
+		return data.Bytes(resp.Value), resp.Height, err
+	}
+	val, h, _, err := GetWithProof(key)
+	return val, h, err
+}
+
+func GetWithProof(key []byte) (data.Bytes, uint64, *iavl.KeyExistsProof, error) {
+	node := commands.GetNode()
+
+	resp, err := node.ABCIQuery("/key", key, true)
 	if err != nil {
-		return
+		return nil, 0, nil, err
+	}
+	ph := int(resp.Height)
+
+	// make sure the proof is the proper height
+	if !resp.Code.IsOK() {
+		return nil, 0, nil, errors.Errorf("Query error %d: %s", resp.Code, resp.Code.String())
+	}
+	// TODO: Handle null proofs
+	if len(resp.Key) == 0 || len(resp.Value) == 0 || len(resp.Proof) == 0 {
+		return nil, 0, nil, lc.ErrNoData()
+	}
+	if ph != 0 && ph != int(resp.Height) {
+		return nil, 0, nil, lc.ErrHeightMismatch(ph, int(resp.Height))
 	}
 
-	// short-circuit with no proofs
-	if viper.GetBool(commands.FlagTrustNode) {
-		return proof, err
-	}
-
-	ph := int(proof.BlockHeight())
 	check, err := GetCertifiedCheckpoint(ph)
 	if err != nil {
-		return
+		return nil, 0, nil, err
+	}
+
+	proof := new(iavl.KeyExistsProof)
+	err = wire.ReadBinaryBytes(resp.Proof, &proof)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, 0, nil, err
 	}
 
 	// validate the proof against the certified header to ensure data integrity
-	err = proof.Validate(check)
+	err = proof.Verify(resp.Key, resp.Value, check.Header.AppHash)
 	if err != nil {
-		return
+		return nil, 0, nil, err
 	}
 
-	return proof, err
+	return data.Bytes(resp.Value), resp.Height, proof, nil
 }
 
 // GetCertifiedCheckpoint gets the signed header for a given height
diff --git a/client/commands/proofs/state.go b/client/commands/proofs/state.go
index 06c4ffe3dd..01a1947814 100644
--- a/client/commands/proofs/state.go
+++ b/client/commands/proofs/state.go
@@ -1,15 +1,9 @@
 package proofs
 
 import (
-	"github.com/pkg/errors"
 	"github.com/spf13/cobra"
 	"github.com/spf13/viper"
 
-	wire "github.com/tendermint/go-wire"
-	"github.com/tendermint/go-wire/data"
-	lc "github.com/tendermint/light-client"
-	"github.com/tendermint/merkleeyes/iavl"
-
 	"github.com/tendermint/basecoin/client/commands"
 )
 
@@ -32,56 +26,11 @@ func keyQueryCmd(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error {
 	if err != nil {
 		return err
 	}
-	prove := viper.GetBool(commands.FlagTrustNode)
+	prove := !viper.GetBool(commands.FlagTrustNode)
 
-	// get the proof -> this will be used by all prover commands
-	node := commands.GetNode()
-
-	////////////////
-	resp, err := node.ABCIQuery("/key", key, prove)
+	val, h, err := Get(key, prove)
 	if err != nil {
 		return err
 	}
-	ph := int(resp.Height)
-
-	// short-circuit with no proofs
-	if !prove {
-		return OutputProof(data.Bytes(resp.Value), resp.Height)
-	}
-
-	// make sure the proof is the proper height
-	if !resp.Code.IsOK() {
-		return errors.Errorf("Query error %d: %s", resp.Code, resp.Code.String())
-	}
-	// TODO: Handle null proofs
-	if len(resp.Key) == 0 || len(resp.Value) == 0 || len(resp.Proof) == 0 {
-		return lc.ErrNoData()
-	}
-	if ph != 0 && ph != int(resp.Height) {
-		return lc.ErrHeightMismatch(ph, int(resp.Height))
-	}
-
-	check, err := GetCertifiedCheckpoint(ph)
-	if err != nil {
-		return err
-	}
-
-	proof := new(iavl.KeyExistsProof)
-	err = wire.ReadBinaryBytes(resp.Proof, &proof)
-	if err != nil {
-		return err
-	}
-
-	// validate the proof against the certified header to ensure data integrity
-	err = proof.Verify(resp.Key, resp.Value, check.Header.AppHash)
-	if err != nil {
-		return err
-	}
-
-	// state just returns raw hex....
-	info := data.Bytes(resp.Value)
-
-	// we can reuse this output for other commands for text/json
-	// unless they do something special like store a file to disk
-	return OutputProof(info, resp.Height)
+	return OutputProof(val, h)
 }
diff --git a/modules/coin/commands/query.go b/modules/coin/commands/query.go
index 1faabb6214..2eba053042 100644
--- a/modules/coin/commands/query.go
+++ b/modules/coin/commands/query.go
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@ package commands
 import (
 	"github.com/pkg/errors"
 	"github.com/spf13/cobra"
+	"github.com/spf13/viper"
 
 	lc "github.com/tendermint/light-client"
 
@@ -32,12 +33,13 @@ func accountQueryCmd(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error {
 	key := stack.PrefixedKey(coin.NameCoin, act.Bytes())
 
 	acc := coin.Account{}
-	proof, err := proofcmd.GetAndParseAppProof(key, &acc)
+	prove := !viper.GetBool(commands.FlagTrustNode)
+	height, err := proofcmd.GetParsed(key, &acc, prove)
 	if lc.IsNoDataErr(err) {
 		return errors.Errorf("Account bytes are empty for address %s ", addr)
 	} else if err != nil {
 		return err
 	}
 
-	return proofcmd.OutputProof(acc, proof.BlockHeight())
+	return proofcmd.OutputProof(acc, height)
 }
diff --git a/modules/coin/rest/handlers.go b/modules/coin/rest/handlers.go
index 60f5d7b2de..f645e87d84 100644
--- a/modules/coin/rest/handlers.go
+++ b/modules/coin/rest/handlers.go
@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@ import (
 	"strings"
 
 	"github.com/gorilla/mux"
+	"github.com/spf13/viper"
 
 	"github.com/tendermint/basecoin"
 	"github.com/tendermint/basecoin/client/commands"
@@ -47,7 +48,8 @@ func doQueryAccount(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 	actor = coin.ChainAddr(actor)
 	key := stack.PrefixedKey(coin.NameCoin, actor.Bytes())
 	account := new(coin.Account)
-	proof, err := proofs.GetAndParseAppProof(key, account)
+	prove := !viper.GetBool(commands.FlagTrustNode)
+	height, err := proofs.GetParsed(key, account, prove)
 	if lightclient.IsNoDataErr(err) {
 		err := fmt.Errorf("account bytes are empty for address: %q", signature)
 		common.WriteError(w, err)
@@ -57,7 +59,7 @@ func doQueryAccount(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 		return
 	}
 
-	if err := proofs.FoutputProof(w, account, proof.BlockHeight()); err != nil {
+	if err := proofs.FoutputProof(w, account, height); err != nil {
 		common.WriteError(w, err)
 	}
 }
diff --git a/modules/ibc/commands/query.go b/modules/ibc/commands/query.go
index 38c3d01e1a..461b5aa0b1 100644
--- a/modules/ibc/commands/query.go
+++ b/modules/ibc/commands/query.go
@@ -12,8 +12,6 @@ import (
 	"github.com/tendermint/basecoin/modules/ibc"
 	"github.com/tendermint/basecoin/stack"
 	"github.com/tendermint/go-wire/data"
-	"github.com/tendermint/light-client/proofs"
-	"github.com/tendermint/merkleeyes/iavl"
 )
 
 // TODO: query seeds (register/update)
@@ -86,17 +84,19 @@ func init() {
 func ibcQueryCmd(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error {
 	var res ibc.HandlerInfo
 	key := stack.PrefixedKey(ibc.NameIBC, ibc.HandlerKey())
-	proof, err := proofcmd.GetAndParseAppProof(key, &res)
+	prove := !viper.GetBool(commands.FlagTrustNode)
+	h, err := proofcmd.GetParsed(key, &res, prove)
 	if err != nil {
 		return err
 	}
-	return proofcmd.OutputProof(res, proof.BlockHeight())
+	return proofcmd.OutputProof(res, h)
 }
 
 func chainsQueryCmd(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error {
 	list := [][]byte{}
 	key := stack.PrefixedKey(ibc.NameIBC, ibc.ChainsKey())
-	proof, err := proofcmd.GetAndParseAppProof(key, &list)
+	prove := !viper.GetBool(commands.FlagTrustNode)
+	h, err := proofcmd.GetParsed(key, &list, prove)
 	if err != nil {
 		return err
 	}
@@ -107,7 +107,7 @@ func chainsQueryCmd(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error {
 		res[i] = string(list[i])
 	}
 
-	return proofcmd.OutputProof(res, proof.BlockHeight())
+	return proofcmd.OutputProof(res, h)
 }
 
 func chainQueryCmd(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error {
@@ -118,12 +118,13 @@ func chainQueryCmd(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error {
 
 	var res ibc.ChainInfo
 	key := stack.PrefixedKey(ibc.NameIBC, ibc.ChainKey(arg))
-	proof, err := proofcmd.GetAndParseAppProof(key, &res)
+	prove := !viper.GetBool(commands.FlagTrustNode)
+	h, err := proofcmd.GetParsed(key, &res, prove)
 	if err != nil {
 		return err
 	}
 
-	return proofcmd.OutputProof(res, proof.BlockHeight())
+	return proofcmd.OutputProof(res, h)
 }
 
 func assertOne(from, to string) error {
@@ -154,12 +155,13 @@ func packetsQueryCmd(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error {
 	}
 
 	var res uint64
-	proof, err := proofcmd.GetAndParseAppProof(key, &res)
+	prove := !viper.GetBool(commands.FlagTrustNode)
+	h, err := proofcmd.GetParsed(key, &res, prove)
 	if err != nil {
 		return err
 	}
 
-	return proofcmd.OutputProof(res, proof.BlockHeight())
+	return proofcmd.OutputProof(res, h)
 }
 
 func packetQueryCmd(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error {
@@ -174,6 +176,7 @@ func packetQueryCmd(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error {
 	if seq < 0 {
 		return errors.Errorf("--%s must be a non-negative number", FlagSequence)
 	}
+	prove := !viper.GetBool(commands.FlagTrustNode)
 
 	var key []byte
 	if from != "" {
@@ -185,24 +188,16 @@ func packetQueryCmd(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error {
 	// Input queue just display the results
 	if from != "" {
 		var packet ibc.Packet
-		proof, err := proofcmd.GetAndParseAppProof(key, &packet)
+		h, err := proofcmd.GetParsed(key, &packet, prove)
 		if err != nil {
 			return err
 		}
-		return proofcmd.OutputProof(packet, proof.BlockHeight())
+		return proofcmd.OutputProof(packet, h)
 	}
 
 	// output queue, create a post packet
 	var packet ibc.Packet
-	proof, err := proofcmd.GetAndParseAppProof(key, &packet)
-	if err != nil {
-		return err
-	}
-
-	// TODO: oh so ugly.  fix before merge!
-	// wait, i want to change go-merkle too....
-	appProof := proof.(proofs.AppProof)
-	extractedProof, err := iavl.ReadProof(appProof.Proof)
+	bs, height, proof, err := proofcmd.GetWithProof(key)
 	if err != nil {
 		return err
 	}
@@ -210,10 +205,10 @@ func packetQueryCmd(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error {
 	// create the post packet here.
 	post := ibc.PostPacketTx{
 		FromChainID:     commands.GetChainID(),
-		FromChainHeight: proof.BlockHeight(),
+		FromChainHeight: height,
 		Key:             key,
 		Packet:          packet,
-		Proof:           extractedProof,
+		Proof:           proof,
 	}
 
 	// print json direct, as we don't need to wrap with the height
diff --git a/modules/nonce/commands/query.go b/modules/nonce/commands/query.go
index 405b0ea94a..d3dc4fcf58 100644
--- a/modules/nonce/commands/query.go
+++ b/modules/nonce/commands/query.go
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ import (
 
 	"github.com/pkg/errors"
 	"github.com/spf13/cobra"
+	"github.com/spf13/viper"
 
 	lc "github.com/tendermint/light-client"
 
@@ -33,23 +34,21 @@ func nonceQueryCmd(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error {
 		return err
 	}
 
-	seq, proof, err := doNonceQuery(signers)
+	seq, height, err := doNonceQuery(signers)
 	if err != nil {
 		return err
 	}
 
-	return proofcmd.OutputProof(seq, proof.BlockHeight())
+	return proofcmd.OutputProof(seq, height)
 }
 
-func doNonceQuery(signers []basecoin.Actor) (sequence uint32, proof lc.Proof, err error) {
-
+func doNonceQuery(signers []basecoin.Actor) (sequence uint32, height uint64, err error) {
 	key := stack.PrefixedKey(nonce.NameNonce, nonce.GetSeqKey(signers))
-
-	proof, err = proofcmd.GetAndParseAppProof(key, &sequence)
+	prove := !viper.GetBool(commands.FlagTrustNode)
+	height, err = proofcmd.GetParsed(key, &sequence, prove)
 	if lc.IsNoDataErr(err) {
 		// no data, return sequence 0
-		return 0, proof, nil
+		return 0, 0, nil
 	}
-
 	return
 }
diff --git a/modules/roles/commands/query.go b/modules/roles/commands/query.go
index 6a333f211a..4bb65c20af 100644
--- a/modules/roles/commands/query.go
+++ b/modules/roles/commands/query.go
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@ package commands
 
 import (
 	"github.com/spf13/cobra"
+	"github.com/spf13/viper"
 
 	"github.com/tendermint/basecoin/client/commands"
 	proofcmd "github.com/tendermint/basecoin/client/commands/proofs"
@@ -28,10 +29,11 @@ func roleQueryCmd(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error {
 
 	var res roles.Role
 	key := stack.PrefixedKey(roles.NameRole, role)
-	proof, err := proofcmd.GetAndParseAppProof(key, &res)
+	prove := !viper.GetBool(commands.FlagTrustNode)
+	height, err := proofcmd.GetParsed(key, &res, prove)
 	if err != nil {
 		return err
 	}
 
-	return proofcmd.OutputProof(res, proof.BlockHeight())
+	return proofcmd.OutputProof(res, height)
 }