Throughout the lands are asylums to which the "touched" may be taken, some willingly, some not, to be cared for by professionals. These may be priests and priestesses, or they may be lay institutions. In some asylums the "touched" are treated well (at least in theory), their gifts being channeled to productive use. Even in these better institutions, there may be abuse of the less valued "guests" by undervalued staff who are themselves abused, or some of the "clients" may be used for experiments by their so-called care-takers. Happy are those "guests" who actually recover and are returned to their families.
The Majic "Touched"
Majic is dangerous; the "mystical arts" are actually less concerned with drawing power together or letting it flow here from a universe richer in mana, than with constraining and channeling the power, and controlling its effect. Even the greatest mages are often confronted with unexpected side effects, even when they are successful in controlling the majority of the power they gather. When things go awry, the results can be as devastating as they are unfathomable.
Folk are generally highly distrustful of majic users who are unknown to them; one reason for the establishment of majic "societies" is to certify their members as disciplined (both their capabilities with the Arts Arcane and in self-restraint in using the Arts) and, therefore, (relatively) safe. Who knows what disaster an unlicensed practitioner might bring forth?
These side effects may be subtle, both in their result and in their transmission. Women who are present at spell castings while pregnant, or simply live near a practitioner of the Arts, run a high risk of having children who are "touched" by the majic. This may be something as negligible as an odd eye colour or number of toes, or such may be but a symptom of greater differences that manifest only later, when triggered. Sometimes the child is born with an obvious affiliation for majic, even demonstrating considerable powers in need of discipline and becomes a promising apprentice, only to fade to normal majical ability later in life - should he or she live so long. Sometimes the "mutation" is great and overt, usually related to the magic in question, such as having features related to a demonic summoning or an animal shape-changing.