I always thought that using water/oil on a sharpening stone was solely to remove the grit particles from the stone. In theory, this removal would enable better contact between blade and stone ... vs. blade/shavings/stone.
Also, it is my perception that this grit removal would play a larger part with lower grit stones... to keep the shavings out of the recesses of the stone. Since the 12k is such a dense and fine grit stone I would think that the edge would easily just push these loose particles out of the way, keeping the good blade to stone contact.
Sure. I think there is a difference between wet and dry on a 12k. It's just a really small difference. So small in fact, that the edge would be properly polished before any real differences arise.
Well, it's just a theory ... lol